TW201947075A - Multicomponent fibers - Google Patents

Abstract

A multicomponent fiber having a shaped cross section is provided in this invention. The multicomponent fiber comprises: (A) at least one water dispersible polymer; and (B) a plurality of domains comprising one or more water non-dispersible polymers, wherein said domains are substantially isolated from each other by said water dispersible polymer intervening between said domains; and wherein said water dispersible polymer is present at the perimeter of the outside cross-section of said multicomponent fiber in a proportion of not greater than 55% water dispersible polymer. Articles produced from the multicomponent fiber are also provided.

Description

Multi-component fiber

The present invention relates to a multi-component fiber comprising at least one non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer and at least one water-dispersible polymer; wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present in the proportion of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer. The periphery of the outer cross section of the multicomponent fiber. It also provides articles containing multi-component fibers, and methods for preparing multi-component fibers, texturing multi-component fibers, and producing various fabrics containing multi-component fibers.

The value of low denier filaments (microfibers) for performance-specific products in the textile industry is well known. The production of such low denier filaments is quite challenging due to the handling of very small fibers. One method used to circumvent this challenge is to make multi-component fibers, in which larger fibers are made and formed into textiles, and then a portion of that multi-component fiber is removed in a secondary process, leaving only small components in the textile product. fiber. In the present invention, this multi-component method is improved, in which the multi-component fiber containing the yarn is designed so that the water-soluble or water-dispersible removable component is present in the multi-component in a proportion of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer. The periphery of the outer cross section of the fiber. This improved multi-component fiber has better performance in subsequent processing steps and is more stable in spinning and processing operations.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross section is provided. The multi-component fiber includes:
(A) at least one water-dispersible polymer; and
(B) a plurality of domains comprising one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer It is present in the proportion of not more than 55% water-dispersible polymer on the periphery of the cross section of the multicomponent fiber.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section is provided. The multi-component fiber includes:
(A) at least one water-dispersible polymer; and
(B) a plurality of domains comprising one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer It is present at a ratio of not more than 25% water-dispersible polymer on the periphery of the outer cross section of the multicomponent fiber.

Items made of multi-component fibers are also available, including knitted and non-woven fabrics.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for preparing a multi-component fiber is provided. The method includes spinning a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section, the multi-component fiber comprising:
(A) at least one water-dispersible polymer; and
(B) a plurality of domains comprising one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer It is present in the proportion of not more than 55% water-dispersible polymer on the periphery of the cross section of the multicomponent fiber.

In another embodiment, a method for texturing multi-component fibers having a shaped cross-section is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and a plurality of domains including one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially Separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymers interposed between the domains; and (B) passing the multicomponent fiber through a first zone including a first heating device and a twisting unit, wherein the first heating device has A heating temperature that is at least 10% lower than the temperature used for the following fibers: For a given type of equipment and processing conditions, it contains no water-dispersible components, has the same non-water-dispersible polymer, and has the same number of total fines Silk, and the same total Danny.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for texturing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and a plurality of domains including one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially Are separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymers interposed between the domains; and (B) the multi-component fiber is passed through a first zone including a first heating device, a twisting unit, and a cooling zone, where the multi-component The step of the fiber passing through the first zone includes heating the multi-component fiber, providing the multi-component fiber with twisting and cooling the multi-component fiber, and wherein the first heating device has a heating temperature that is at least 10% lower than the temperature used for the following fibers: Given types of equipment and processing conditions, which do not contain water-dispersible components, have the same non-water-dispersible polymer, have the same number of total filaments in the fiber, and the same total denier; and (C) as appropriate, The fibers are passed through a second zone, where the second zone contains a second heating device.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for texturing fibers is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a first fiber, wherein the first fiber is a multicomponent fiber having a shaped cross section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and one or more non-water-dispersible polymers A plurality of domains, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; (B) providing a second fiber; (C) passing the first fiber through the first processing zone Where the first processing zone includes a heating device and a twisting zone, where the first fiber is heated, wherein the heating temperature of the first heating device is at least 10% lower than the temperature for the following fibers: for a given type of equipment and processing Provided that it does not contain a water-dispersible component, has the same non-water-dispersible polymer, has the same number of total filaments in the fiber, and the same total denier, wherein the twisting zone includes at least one friction disk; The second fiber passes through a second processing zone, where the second processing zone includes a heating device and a twisting zone, wherein the second fiber is heated; and (E) combining the first fiber and the second fiber to prepare a yarn, the yarn Line contains a cut And at least one water-dispersible polymer and a second fiber component as much fiber.

In another embodiment, a method for texturing multi-component fibers having a shaped cross-section is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and a plurality of domains including one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially Separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer exists at the periphery of the outer side cross-section of the multi-component fiber in a proportion of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer; And (B) passing the multi-component fiber through a first zone containing a first heating device and a twisting unit, wherein the first heating device has a heating temperature that is at least 10% lower than the temperature for the following fibers: for a given type The equipment and processing conditions are that it does not contain water-dispersible components, has the same non-water-dispersible polymer, has the same number of total filaments in the fiber, and the same total denier.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for texturing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a multicomponent fiber having a shaped cross-section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and a plurality of domains comprising one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially inserted into the The water-dispersible polymers between the domains are separated from each other; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer exists at the periphery of the cross section of the multicomponent fiber at a ratio of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer; and (B) the The multi-component fiber passes through the first zone, and the first zone includes a heating device, a twisting unit, and a cooling zone. The step of passing the multi-component fiber through the first zone includes heating the multi-component fiber to provide twist and Cooling multi-component fibers, and where the first heating device has a heating temperature that is at least 10% lower than the temperature used for the following fibers: for a given type of equipment and processing conditions, it does not contain water-dispersible components and has the same non-aqueous dispersion Polymer, having the same number of total filaments and the same total denier in the fiber; and (C) optionally passing the fiber through a second zone, where the second zone includes a second heating device.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for texturing fibers is provided. The method includes: (A) providing a first fiber, wherein the first fiber is a multicomponent fiber having a shaped cross section and at least one water-dispersible polymer; and one or more non-water-dispersible polymers A plurality of domains, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present in a proportion of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer The periphery of the outer cross section of the multi-component fiber; (B) providing a second fiber; (C) passing the first fiber through a first processing zone, wherein the first processing zone includes a heating device and a twisting zone, wherein the first fiber passes through Heating, where the heating temperature of the first heating device is at least 10% lower than the temperature used for the following fibers: for a given type of equipment and processing conditions, it does not contain water-dispersible components, has the same non-water-dispersible polymer, fibers Have the same number of total filaments and the same total denier, wherein the twisting zone includes at least one friction disk; (D) passing the second fiber through a second processing zone, wherein the second processing zone includes a heating device and plus Region, wherein the second heated fiber; and (E) combining the first fibers and the second fibers to produce yarns, the yarns comprising a shaped cross-section and at least one water-dispersible polymer and a second fiber component as much fiber.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method for producing a fabric is provided. The method includes: 1) providing a plurality of multi-component fibers; wherein the multi-component fibers include at least one non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer and at least one water-dispersible polymer, wherein the multi-component fiber has a water-dispersible polymer segment and Non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer segment; wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present on the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multicomponent fiber in a proportion of not more than about 55% of the water-dispersible polymer; and 2) weaving, knitting, and / or braiding Multi-component fiber to make fabric.

Cross-reference to related applications

This application is an original application claiming priority from: US Provisional Application 62 / 654,938 filed April 9, 2018, Provisional Application 62 / 783,335 filed December 21, 2018, December 2018 U.S. Provisional Application 62 / 783,339 filed on March 21, U.S. Provisional Application 62 / 783,358 filed on 21 December 2018, U.S. Provisional Application 62 / 783,364 filed on 21 December 2018, and 21 December 2018 U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 783,348 filed today. The foregoing application is incorporated herein by reference to the extent that it does not conflict with the statements herein.

The present invention provides a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section, the multi-component fiber comprising: (A) at least one water-dispersible polymer; and (B) a plurality of domains including one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the The isodomains are substantially separated from each other by water-dispersible polymers interposed between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymers are present on the periphery of the cross-section of the multicomponent fiber at a ratio of no greater than 55%. The present invention also provides a method for texturing a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section.

The term "multicomponent fiber" as used herein is intended to mean a fiber or filament prepared by melting at least two or more fibers in a separate extruder to form a polymer, directing the resulting multiple polymers into A spinning head of a plurality of distributed flow channels, and the flow channels are spun together to form a fiber. Multicomponent fibers are sometimes referred to as conjugate or bicomponent fibers. The polymer is configured in different sections or configurations along the cross-section of the multi-component fiber and continues to extend along the length of the multi-component fiber. The configuration of these multi-component fibers may include, for example, eccentric sheath-core type, side-by-side, segmented round cake type, striped (striped), scattered island shape. For example, a multi-component fiber can be prepared by separately extruding a water-dispersible sulfonic polyester and one or more non-water-dispersible synthetic polymers through a spinning head, which is formed or engineered Its transverse geometry, such as a stripe configuration.

The terms "segment" and / or "domain" when used to describe a shaped section of a multicomponent fiber refers to a region within the section that contains a non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer. These domains or segments are substantially separated from each other by water-dispersible polymers inserted between the segments or domains. The term "substantially separated" as used herein is intended to mean segments or domains that are set apart from each other to allow the individual segments or domains to be formed after the water-dispersible polymer is removed. Segments or domains may have similar shapes and sizes or shapes and / or sizes may vary. In addition, a segment or domain may be "substantially continuous" along the length of the multicomponent fiber. The term "substantially continuous" means that the segments or domains are continuous along at least 10 cm of the length of the multicomponent fiber. In one embodiment of the invention, these segments or domains of the multi-component fiber create strip fibers when removed.

The term "water-dispersible" as used with reference to the water-dispersible component of a water-dispersible polymer (e.g., a sulfur polyester) is intended to be used in conjunction with the terms "water-dissipable", "water-disintegratable", "water-soluble" "Water-dispersible", "water-soluble", "water-removable", "hydrosoluble" and "water-dispersible" are synonymous and are intended to mean that the water-dispersible polymer composition is sufficient to be multi-component The fibers are removed and dispersed and / or dissolved by the action of water to achieve the release and separation of the non-water-dispersible fibers contained therein. The terms "dispersion", "dispersibility", "dissipation" or "dissipable" mean when a sufficient amount of deionized water (e.g. 100: 1 water: fiber by weight) is used at a temperature of about 60 ° C When a loose suspension or slurry of water-dispersible polymer fibers is formed within a period of up to 5 days, the water-dispersible polymer components dissolve, disintegrate, or separate from the multi-component fibers, thus leaving non-water-dispersible A plurality of strip fibers.

In the context of the present invention, all these terms refer to the activity of a mixture of water and a water-miscible co-solvent on the water-dispersible polymers described herein. Examples of these water-miscible co-solvents include alcohols, ketones, glycol ethers, esters, and the like. This term is intended to include both the case where the water-dispersible polymer is dissolved to form a true solution and the case where the water-dispersible polymer is dispersed in an aqueous medium. When the water-dispersible polymer is a sulfonic polyester, due to the statistical characteristics of the sulfonic polyester composition, when a single sulfonic polyester sample is placed in an aqueous medium, it may have soluble fractions and dispersion. Fractions.

The term "polyester" as used herein encompasses both "homopolyester" and "copolyester" and means a synthetic polymer prepared by polycondensation of a difunctional carboxylic acid with a difunctional hydroxy compound. Generally, difunctional carboxylic acids are dicarboxylic acids and difunctional hydroxy compounds are glycols such as ethylene glycol and glycols. Alternatively, the difunctional carboxylic acid may be a hydroxycarboxylic acid, such as p-hydroxybenzoic acid, and the bifunctional hydroxy compound may be an aromatic core having two hydroxy substituents, such as hydroquinone. As used herein, the term "sulfonate polyester" means any polyester comprising a sulfonate monomer. The term "residue" as used herein means any organic structure incorporated into a polymer via a polycondensation reaction involving the corresponding monomer. Thus, a dicarboxylic acid residue may be derived from a dicarboxylic acid monomer or its related acid halide, ester, salt, anhydride, or mixture thereof. The term dicarboxylic acid is therefore intended to include dicarboxylic acids and any derivatives of dicarboxylic acids suitable for use in the polycondensation process with diols to produce high molecular weight polyesters, including their related acid halides, esters, half-esters, salts, Half salt, acid anhydride, mixed acid anhydride, or a mixture thereof.

The water-dispersible polymer of the present invention may be any water-dispersible polymer known in the art. Water-dispersible polymers include, but are not limited to, polymers of sulfopolyester, polyvinyl alcohol, acrylics, polyethylene glycol, polyvinyl methyl ether, polyethyleneimine, polyquaternary amine, ethylene oxide, Starch and modified fibrous. Examples of acrylics include, but are not limited to, ethylene-acrylic acid copolymers and polyacrylic acid or methacrylic acid copolymers. An example of modified cellulose is hydroxyethyl cellulose.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the water-dispersible polymer is a water-dispersible sulfonic polyester. The water-dispersible sulfonic acid polyester generally includes a dicarboxylic acid monomer residue, a sulfonic acid monomer residue, a diol monomer residue, and a repeating unit. The sulfonic acid-based monomer may be a dicarboxylic acid, a diol, or a hydroxycarboxylic acid. The term "monomer residue" as used herein means a residue of a dicarboxylic acid, a diol, or a hydroxycarboxylic acid. As used herein, "repeat unit" means an organic structure having 2 monomer residues bonded via a carbonyloxy group. The sulfonic acid-based polyester of the present invention contains acid residues (100 mol%) and diol residues (100 mol%) at substantially the same molar ratio, which react at substantially the same ratio such that the total of repeating units The mole number is equal to 100 mole percentage. The percentage of moles provided in the present invention can therefore be calculated as the total moles of acid residues, the total moles of diol residues, or the total moles of repeating units. For example, a sulfonate polyester containing 30 mole percent sulfonate monomer (which may be a dicarboxylic acid, a diol, or a hydroxycarboxylic acid) on a total repeat unit basis means that the sulfonate polyester contains a total 30 mole percent sulfonic monomers in 100 mole percent repeat units. Therefore, there are 30 mol sulfonic acid monomer residues per 100 mol repeat units. Similarly, a sulfonic polyester containing 30 mole percent sulfonated dicarboxylic acid based on total acid residues means that the sulfonic polyester contains 30 mole percent sulfonated dicarboxylic acid in total 100 mole percent acid residues acid. Therefore, in this latter case, there are 30 mol sulfonated dicarboxylic acid residues between every 100 mol acid residues.

Although the inclusion of a water-dispersible polymer component in a multi-component fiber design is desirable because it can be removed in an aqueous solution process to leave very small non-water-dispersible polymer fibers, other characteristics of the water-dispersible polymer can be Processing problems related to the production of multi-component fibers, storage of multi-component fibers, and the effectiveness of multi-component fibers in subsequent processing have arisen. In general, the water-dispersible polymer component in the fiber will contain a significant percentage of the surface (perimeter) of the multi-component fiber due to the typical cross-sectional design or the purpose of facilitating the easy decomposition of the water-dispersible polymer component. It has been found in the present invention that the amount of water-dispersible polymer at the surface of the multicomponent fiber should be reduced. This reduction results in a multi-component fiber that is more stable in terms of spinning processing and subsequent processing. For example, multi-component fibers with more than 55% water-dispersible polymer at the periphery can experience the following processing problems: 1) unwinding tension that increases with storage conditions; 2) subsequent processing equipment that causes wear and tear on equipment components High friction; 3) sensitivity to processing components; 4) poor performance in the spinning process configuration; and 5) multi-component fiber yarns after processing.

In the present invention, the water-dispersible polymer is present on the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multicomponent fiber of the present invention in a proportion of not more than about 55% of the water-dispersible polymer. In other embodiments of the present invention, the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multi-component fiber has no more than about 54%, 53%, 52%, 51%, 50%, 49%, 48%, 47%, 46%, 45% , 44%, 43%, 42%, 41%, 40%, 39%, 38%, 37%, 36%, 35%, 34%, 33%, 32%, 31%, 30%, 29%, 28 %, 27%, 26%, 25%, 24%, 23%, 22%, 21%, 20%, 19%, 18%, 17%, 16%, 15%, 14%, 13%, 12%, 11%, 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2% or 1% of the water-dispersible polymer.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the amount of the water-dispersible polymer in the periphery of the multi-component fiber may be about 1% to about 55%, about 5% to about 53%, about 5% to about 50%, about 5% to about 45%, about 5% to 50%, about 5% to about 40%, about 7% to about 35%, about 7% to about 30%, about 7% to about 25%, about 8% to It varies from about 23%, about 9% to about 22%, about 10% to about 21%, about 11% to about 20%, about 12% to about 19%, and about 13% to about 18%. The percentage of water-dispersible polymer in the periphery of the multi-component fiber can be measured by taking an image of the cross-section of the multi-component fiber and measuring the length of the periphery including the water-dispersible polymer. After measuring this length, it is divided by the total perimeter of the multicomponent fiber.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the multi-component fiber has a striped or striped cross section as shown in FIG. 2. It contains 11 bands and the outer band is a non-water dispersible synthetic polymer. It contains 6 strips of non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer and 5 strips of water-dispersible polymer. In one embodiment, the water-dispersible polymer is a sulfonic acid-based polyester, and the non-water-dispersible polymer is polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

In another embodiment, the multi-component fiber has a segmented round cake configuration as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. In FIG. 3, the multi-component fiber has 16 segments, of which 8 water-dispersible polymer domains separate 8 non-water-dispersible domains. In Figure 4, the multicomponent fiber has 32 segments, of which 16 water-dispersible polymer domains separate 16 non-water-dispersible domains. In these two figures, the water-dispersible polymer existing at the periphery of the outer cross section of the multicomponent fiber was 21.6%.

Multicomponent fibers can be cut to any length and can be used to make any article known in the art. Such items include, but are not limited to, non-woven items or cut staple fiber yarns. In one embodiment, the multi-component fiber is cut to make a segmented fiber. As used herein, "cut fiber" refers to fibers having discrete lengths. Generally speaking, the cut fiber may have a cut length of 0.1 millimeter (mm) to 100 mm; however, a cut length of 3 mm to 10 mm is generally preferred. In one embodiment of the invention, the multi-component fiber is cut to a length in the range of at least 0.1, 0.25 or 0.5 mm and / or not more than 25, 10, 5 or 2 mm. For cut staple fiber yarns, multicomponent fibers can be cut into cut fibers with a cut length in the range of 20 mm to 100 mm. In one embodiment, the cutting ensures a consistent fiber length such that at least 75, 85, 90, 95, or 98 percent of the individual fibers have a single length within 90, 95, or 98 percent of the average length of all the fibers.

In addition, our invention also provides a method for producing multicomponent fibers and microfibers derived therefrom, the method comprising (a) producing multicomponent fibers and (b) producing microfibers from multicomponent fibers.

The method for preparing a multi-component fiber includes spinning at least one water-dispersible polymer and at least one non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer to prepare the multi-component fiber. In one embodiment, the method starts by: (a) spinning glass transition temperature (Tg) of at least 25 ° C, 26 ° C, 27 ° C, 28 ° C, 29 ° C, 30 ° C, 31 ° C, 32 ° C, 33 ° C, 34 ° C, 35 ° C, 36 ° C, 37 ° C, 38 ° C, 39 ° C, 40 ° C, 41 ° C, 42 ° C, 43 ° C, 44 ° C, 45 ° C, 46 ° C, 47 ° C, 48 ° C, 49 ° C , 50 ° C, 51 ° C, 52 ° C, 53 ° C, 54 ° C, 55 ° C, 56 ° C, 57 ° C, 58 ° C, 59 ° C, 60 ° C, 61 ° C, 62 ° C, 63 ° C, 64 ° C or 65 ° C water Dispersive sulfonic polyester and one or more non-water dispersible synthetic polymers. Multi-component fibers may have a plurality of segments that include non-water dispersible synthetic polymers that are substantially separated from each other by sulfonate-based polyesters inserted between the segments. Sulfonic polyesters can include:
(i) about 50 to about 96 mole percentages of one or more isophthalic acid and / or terephthalic acid residues based on total acid residues;
(ii) from about 4 to about 30 mole percent of the sodium sulfonic acid isophthalic acid residues based on the total acid residues;
(iii) one or more diol residues, wherein based on the total diol residues, at least 25 mole percent of poly (ethylene glycol) has a structure H- (OCH ₂ -CH ₂ ) _n -OH, where n is an integer in the range of 2 to about 500; and
(iv) Residues of branched monomers having 3 or more functional groups in a percentage of 0 to about 20 moles based on total repeating units, wherein the functional groups are a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof. Ideally, the sulfonate-based polyester has a melt viscosity of less than 12,000, 8,000, or 6,000 poise as measured at a strain rate of 1 radian / second at 240 ° C.

Microfibers are produced by (b) contacting the multicomponent fibers with water to remove the water-dispersible polymer, thereby forming microfibers comprising a non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer. When water-dispersible polymers are used in non-woven applications in sulfonate-based polyesters, multicomponent fibers and water are typically allowed to be at a temperature of about 25 ° C to about 100 ° C, or at a temperature of about 50 ° C to about 80 ° C. Contact at a temperature for a period of about 10 to about 600 seconds, thereby dissipating or dissolving the sulfonic polyester. In weaving, knitting, or knitting applications, multi-component fibers and water are brought to a temperature of about 25 ° C to about 150 ° C, about 50 ° C to about 150 ° C, about 80 ° C to about 150 ° C, or about 80 ° C to about 130 ° C. Under contact.

The weight ratio of the water-dispersible polymer to the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer component in the multi-component fiber of the present invention is generally in the range of about 98: 2 to about 2:98 or in another example, about 25:75 to In the range of about 75:25. In another embodiment of the present invention, the weight ratio of the water-dispersible polymer to the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer component in the multi-component fiber of the present invention is a ratio of about 90:10. Generally, the water-dispersible polymer accounts for 50% by weight or less, 40% by weight or less, 30% by weight or less, and 20% by weight or less of the total weight of the multicomponent fiber. In one embodiment of the present invention, the water-dispersible polymer is a sulfonic polyester.

A method for making a woven, knitted or knitted article or fabric comprising the multi-component fiber of the present invention is also provided. Multicomponent fibers can be woven, knitted, or knitted with any other fiber known in the art. After weaving, knitting or knitting the article or fabric, the article or fabric is contacted with water to remove the water-dispersible polymer.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-component fiber can be cut to any length depending on the end-use application. In one embodiment, the multi-component is cut to prepare a non-woven medium. The method contains:
(a) Cutting multi-component fibers into cut multi-component fibers with a length of less than 100 mm;
(b) contacting the fiber-containing raw material containing the cut multi-component fiber with washing water for at least 0.1, 0.5, or 1 minute and / or not more than 30, 20 or 10 minutes to prepare a fiber mixed slurry, wherein the washing water may have less than 10, PH of 8, 7.5, or 7 and may be substantially free of added caustic;
(c) heating the fiber mixed slurry to prepare a heated fiber mixed slurry;
(d) optionally, mixing the fiber mixture slurry in the shear zone;
(e) removing at least a portion of the sulfonate-based polyester from the multicomponent fiber to prepare a slurry mixture, the slurry mixture comprising a sulfonate-based polyester dispersion and microfibers;
(f) removing at least a portion of the sulfonic acid-based polyester dispersion from the slurry mixture to thereby provide a wet pulp board comprising microfibers, wherein the wet pulp board is comprised of at least 5, 10, 15 or 20% by weight and / or Composition of more than 70, 55 or 40% by weight of microfibers and at least 30, 45 or 60% by weight and / or not more than 90, 85 or 80% by weight of sulfonic polyester dispersion An aqueous dispersion composed of water and a water-dispersible sulfonic polyester; and
(g) combining a wet pulp board with a diluting liquid to prepare a dilute wet spreading slurry or "fiber ingredient" comprising an amount of at least 0.001, 0.005 or 0.01 wt% and / or not more than 1, 0.5 or 0.1 wt% Microfibers to make non-woven media.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the wet pulp board is composed of at least 5, 10, 15 or 20% by weight and / or not more than 50, 45 or 40% by weight of non-water-dispersible microfibers and at least 50, 55 or 60 It is composed of a sulfonic acid-based polyester dispersion by weight% and / or not more than 90, 85 or 80% by weight.

In addition, the wet pulp board may further include a fiber processing composition including an oil, a wax, and / or a fatty acid. The fatty acids and / or oils used in the fiber processing composition may be of natural origin. In another embodiment, the fiber processing composition comprises mineral oil, stearates, sorbitan esters and / or tallow oil. The fiber processing composition may constitute at least 10, 50 or 100 ppmw and / or not more than 5,000, 1000 or 500 ppmw of the wet pulp board.

Removal of the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester can be determined by physical observation of the slurry mixture. If most of the water-dispersible sulfonate polyester has been removed, the water system used to wash the fabric or article is transparent. If the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester is still present in a significant amount, the color of the water used to rinse the fabric or article may be milky white. In addition, if the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester is left on the fabric or article, the touch of the fabric or article may be sticky to some extent.

In one embodiment of the present invention, at least one water softener can be used to facilitate the removal of the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester from the multi-component fiber. Any water softener known in the art can be utilized. In one embodiment, the water softener is a chelator or a calcium ion separator. A suitable chelating agent or calcium ion separating agent is a compound containing a plurality of carboxylic acid groups per molecule, wherein the carboxyl group in the molecular structure of the chelating agent is separated by 2 to 6 atoms. An example of the most common chelating agent of tetrasodium based on ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), each molecular structure contains four carboxylic acid moieties, and there are 3 atoms separated between adjacent carboxylic acid groups. Examples of the most basic chelating compounds are maleic acid or sodium salts of succinic acid. Other examples of suitable chelating agents include compounds having multiple carboxylic acid groups in the molecular structure, where the carboxylic acid groups are separated by a desired distance (2 to 6 atomic units) to obtain a divalent or polyvalent cation Favorable steric interactions, such as calcium, such that the chelator is preferably bound to a divalent or multivalent cation. These compounds include, for example, diethylene glycol triamine pentaacetic acid; diethylene glycol triamine-N, N, N ', N', N ''-pentaacetic acid; triamine pentaacetic acid; N, N-bis (2- (Bis- (carboxymethyl) amino) ethyl) -glycine; bis-ethyltriaminepentaacetic acid; [[(carboxymethyl) imino] bis (ethylethylamino)]-tetrakis -Acetic acid; edetic acid; ethylidenediazinetetraacetic acid; EDTA, free base; EDTA, free acid; ethylenediamine-N, N, N ', N'-tetraacetic acid; hampene; verene; N, N'-1,2-ethanediylbis- (N- (carboxymethyl) glycine); ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid; N, N-bis (carboxymethyl) glycine; Triacetic acid; trilone A; α, α ', α' '-5 trimethylamine tricarboxylic acid; tris (carboxymethyl) amine; aminotriacetic acid; hampshire NTA acid; nitrogen-2,2', 2 '' -Triacetic acid; titriplex i; nitrotriacetic acid; and mixtures thereof.

The sulfonic acid-based polyesters described herein may have an inherent viscosity (hereinafter simply referred to as "the" for short "" ") of at least about 0.1, 0.2, or 0.3 dL / g, preferably about 0.2 to 0.3 dL / g and most preferably greater than about 0.3 dL / g IV "), as measured in a 60/40 part by weight solution of a phenol / tetrachloroethane solvent at 25 ° C and a concentration of about 0.5 g of a sulfonic polyester in 100 mL of solvent.

The sulfonic acid-based polyester of the present invention may include one or more dicarboxylic acid residues. Depending on the type and concentration of the sulfonic acid monomer, the dicarboxylic acid residue may include at least 60, 65 or 70 mole percent and not more than 95 or 100 mole percent acid residues. Examples of dicarboxylic acids that can be used include aliphatic dicarboxylic acids, alicyclic dicarboxylic acids, aromatic dicarboxylic acids, or a mixture of two or more of these acids. Therefore, suitable dicarboxylic acids include, but are not limited to, succinic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid, azalea acid, sebacic acid, fumaric acid, maleic acid, itaconic acid, 1,3- Cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, 1,4 cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, diglycolic acid, 2,5-norbornanedicarboxylic acid, phthalic acid, terephthalic acid, 1,4-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, 2 , 5-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, biphenyl, 4,4'-oxydibenzoic acid, 4,4'-sulfofluorenedibenzoic acid and isophthalic acid. Preferred dicarboxylic acid residues are isophthalic acid, terephthalic acid and 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, or, if a diester is used, p-benzene having isophthalic acid and terephthalic acid residues. Dimethyl diformate, dimethyl isophthalate and dimethyl-1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylate are particularly preferred. Although methyl dicarboxylate is the preferred embodiment, acceptable systems include higher order alkyl esters such as ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, and the like. In addition, aromatic esters, especially phenyl, can also be used.

Based on total repeating units, the sulfonic polyester can include residues of at least 4, 6 or 8 mole percent and not more than about 40, 35, 30 or 25 mole percent of the residue of at least one sulfonic monomer, The acid-based monomer has two functional groups and one or more sulfonate groups connected to one or more aromatic or cycloaliphatic rings, wherein the functional groups are a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof. The sulfonic acid monomer may be a dicarboxylic acid or an ester thereof containing a sulfonic acid ester group, a diol containing a sulfonic acid ester group, or a hydroxy acid containing a sulfonic acid ester group. The term "sulfonate" means salts having the structure "-SO ₃ M", the salt of a cation wherein M system. The cation of the sulfonate can be a metal ion, such as Li ⁺ , Na ⁺ , K ^+, and the like. When a monovalent alkali metal ion is used as the cation of the sulfonate, the obtained sulfonate-based polyester can be determined according to the content of the sulfonate-based monomer in the polymer, water temperature, surface area / thickness of the sulfonate-based polyester, and the like The dispersion rate is completely dispersed in water. When a divalent metal ion is used, the resulting sulfonic acid-based polyester is less easily dispersed by cold water but more easily dispersed by hot water. The use of more than one counterion within a single polymer composition is possible and may provide a means of adjusting or fine-tuning the water responsiveness of the resulting article. Examples of sulfonate monomer residues include where the sulfonate group is attached to an aromatic acid core, such as benzene, naphthalene, diphenyl, oxydiphenyl, sulfonyldiphenyl, methylenediphenyl Or cycloaliphatic rings (such as cyclopentyl, cyclobutyl, cycloheptyl, and cyclooctyl) monomer residues. Other examples of sulfonic acid monomer residues that can be used in the present invention are sulfonic acid phthalic acid, sulfonic acid terephthalic acid, sulfonic acid isophthalic acid, or a combination thereof. Other examples of sulfonic monomers that can be used include 5-sodium sulfonic isophthalic acid and its esters.

The sulfonic acid monosystem compounds used to prepare sulfonic polyesters are known and can be prepared using methods well known in the art. For example, a sulfonic acid-based monomer in which a sulfonate group is attached to an aromatic ring can be prepared by sulfonating an aromatic compound with oleum to obtain the corresponding sulfonic acid and then with a metal oxide Or a base (such as sodium acetate) to produce a sulfonate. Procedures for preparing various sulfonic acid-based monomers are described, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 3,779,993, U.S. Patent No. 3,018,272; and U.S. Patent No. 3,528,947, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Sulfonic polyesters can include one or more diol residues, which can include aliphatic, cycloaliphatic, and aralkyl glycols. Cycloaliphatic diols (such as 1,3- and 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol) can exist in their pure cis or trans isomer form or as a mixture of cis and trans isomers. As used herein, the term "diol" is synonymous with the term "glycol" and can encompass any glycol. Examples of glycols include, but are not limited to, ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 2,4-dimethyl-2-ethylhexane-1, 3-diol, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediol, 2-ethyl-2-butyl-1,3-propanediol, 2-ethyl-2-isobutyl-1,3- Propylene glycol, 1,3-butanediol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,6-hexanedione Alcohol, thiodiethanol, 1,2-cyclohexanedimethanol, 1,3-cyclohexanedimethanol, 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, 2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1 , 3-cyclobutanediol, p-diol, or a combination of one or more of these diols.

Based on the total diol residues, the diol residues can include about 25 mol% to about 100 mol% of poly (ethylene glycol) residues, the poly (ethylene glycol) having the structure H- (OCH ₂ -CH ₂ ) _n -OH, where n is an integer in the range of 2 to about 500. Non-limiting examples of low molecular weight polyethylene glycols (eg, where n is 2 to 6) are diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, and tetraethylene glycol. Among these low molecular weight diols, diethylene glycol and triethylene glycol are the most preferable. Higher molecular weight polyethylene glycols where n is 7 to about 500 (abbreviated herein as "PEG") include products of the Dow Chemical Company (formerly Union Carbide)-commercially available products known under the name CARBOWAX®. Generally, PEG is used in combination with other glycols, such as diethylene glycol or ethylene glycol. Based on the value of n in the range of greater than 6 to 500, the molecular weight may be in the range of greater than 300 to about 22,000 g / mol. The molecular weight and the mole percentage are inversely proportional to each other; specifically, as the molecular weight increases, the mole percentage will decrease in order to achieve the specified hydrophilicity. For example, considering that PEG with a molecular weight of 1,000 g / mol can constitute up to 10 mole percent of total diols, while PEG with a molecular weight of 10,000 g / mol will typically combine to a content of less than 1 mole percent of total diols This concept is illustrative.

Some dimer, trimer and tetramer diols can be formed in situ due to side reactions, which can be controlled by changing processing conditions. For example, acid-catalyzed dehydration reactions can be used to derive different amounts of diethylene, triethylene, and tetraethylene glycol from ethylene glycol. The dehydration reaction is easy to perform the polycondensation reaction under acidic conditions. occur. The presence of buffer solutions well known to those skilled in the art can be added to the reaction mixture to retard these side reactions. However, if the buffer is omitted, additional composition latitude is possible and allows dimerization, trimerization, and tetramerization to proceed.

Based on the total repeating unit, the sulfonic acid-based polyester of the present invention may include residues of 0 or less than 25, 20, 15, or 10 mole percent branching monomers having 3 or more functional groups. Wherein the functional group is a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof. Non-limiting examples of branched monomers are 1,1,1-trimethylolpropane, 1,1,1-trimethylolethane, glycerol, pentaerythritol, erythritol, threitol, dipentaerythritol, Sorbitol, trimellitic anhydride, pyromellitic dianhydride, dimethylolpropionic acid, or a combination thereof. The presence of branched monomers can lead to a number of possible benefits to sulfonate-based polyesters, including but not limited to the ability to adjust rheology, solubility, and tensile properties. For example, at a constant molecular weight, branched sulfonic acid polyesters will also have a greater concentration of end groups than linear analogs, and these end groups can promote the crosslinking reaction after polymerization. However, at high concentrations of the branching agent, the sulfonic polyester can be easily gelled.

The sulfonate-based polyester used for multi-component fibers may have at least 25 ° C, 26 ° C, 27 ° C, 28 ° C, 29 ° C, 30 ° C, 31 ° C, 32 ° C, 33 ° C, 34 ° C, 35 ° C, 36 ° C, 37 ° C, 38 ° C, 39 ° C, 40 ° C, 41 ° C, 42 ° C, 43 ° C, 44 ° C, 45 ° C, 46 ° C, 47 ° C, 48 ° C, 49 ° C, 50 ° C, 51 ° C, 52 ° C, 53 ° C , 54 ° C, 55 ° C, 56 ° C, 57 ° C, 58 ° C, 59 ° C, 60 ° C, 61 ° C, 62 ° C, 63 ° C, 64 ° C, or 65 ° C (abbreviated as "Tg" herein), If standard techniques well known to those skilled in the art are used, such as differential scanning calorimetry ("DSC") measurements on anhydrous polymers. The Tg measurement of the sulfonate-based polyester was performed using "anhydrous polymer", which is the polymer sample in which the external or absorbed water is heated by heating the polymer to a temperature of about 200 ° C and the sample is restored to Remove at room temperature. Generally, sulfonic polyesters are dried in a DSC device by performing a first thermal scan in which the sample is heated to a temperature above the water vaporization temperature, and the sample is held at that temperature until it is absorbed in the polymer. The vaporization of water is completed (as indicated by a wide range of endothermic), the sample is cooled to room temperature, and then a second thermal scan is performed to obtain a Tg measurement result.

In one embodiment, our invention provides a sulfonic acid-based polyester having a glass transition temperature (Tg) of at least 25 ° C, wherein the sulfonic acid-based polyester comprises:
(a) one or more of phthalic acid and / or terephthalic acid, based on total acid residues, at least 50, 60, 75 or 85 mole percent and not more than 96, 95, 90 or 85 mole percent Residues
(b) about 4 to about 30 mole percent of sodium sulfonic acid isophthalic acid residues based on total acid residues;
(c) one or more diol residues, wherein at least 25, 50, 70, or 75 mole percent based on total diol residues is a polymer having the structure H- (OCH ₂ -CH ₂ ) _n -OH ( Ethylene glycol), where n is an integer in the range of 2 to about 500;
(d) Residues of branched monomers having 3 or more functional groups, from 0 to about 20 moles, based on total repeating units, wherein the functional group is a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof.

The sulfonic acid-based polyesters of the present invention are readily prepared from suitable dicarboxylic acids, esters, anhydrides, salts, sulfonic acid-based monomers, and suitable diols or diol mixtures using typical polycondensation reaction conditions. It can be made in continuous, semi-continuous, and batch operation modes and can utilize a variety of reactor types. Examples of suitable reactor types include, but are not limited to, stirred tanks, continuous stirred tanks, slurry reactors, tubular reactors, wiped film reactors, falling film reactors, or squeeze reactors. The term "continuous" as used herein means a process in which reactants are introduced and products are simultaneously withdrawn in an uninterrupted manner. "Continuous" means that the operation of the process is substantially or completely continuous and contrasts with "batch". "Continuous" does not in any way mean prohibiting normal interference with process continuity caused by, for example, startup, reactor maintenance, or scheduled shutdown periods. The term "batch" process as used herein means a process in which all reactants are added to a reactor and then processed according to a predetermined reaction process, during which no material is fed or removed from the reactor. The term "semi-continuous" means a process in which some of the reactants are loaded at the beginning of the process and the remaining reactants are continuously fed as the reaction proceeds. Alternatively, the semi-continuous process can also include a process similar to a batch process, in which all reactants are added at the beginning of the process, but one or more products are continuously removed as the reaction proceeds. This process advantageously operates as a continuous process for economic reasons and produces excellent coloration of the polymer because the appearance of the sulfonic acid-based polyester can deteriorate if it is left in the reactor for too long at high temperatures.

Sulfonic polyesters can be prepared by procedures known to those skilled in the art. Sulfonic monomers are most often added directly to the reaction mixture from which the polymer is made, but other processes are known and can also be described, for example, in US Patent No. 3,018,272, US Patent No. 3,075,952, and US Patent No. 3,033,822 use. The reaction of the sulfonic acid monomer, the diol component and the dicarboxylic acid component can be performed using conventional polyester polymerization conditions. For example, when a sulfonate polyester is prepared by means of a transesterification reaction (ie, from the ester form of a dicarboxylic acid component), the reaction process may include two steps. In the first step, the diol component and the dicarboxylic acid component (such as dimethyl isophthalate) are in a range of about 0.0 kPa gauge to about 414 kPa gauge (60 psig, "psig"). Under the pressure, the reaction is performed at a high temperature of about 150 ° C to about 250 ° C for about 0.5 to 8 hours. Preferably, the temperature of the transesterification reaction is in the range of about 180 ° C to about 230 ° C for about 1 to 4 hours, and the preferred pressure is about 103 kPa gauge (15 psig) to about 276 kPa gauge (40 psig). ). Thereafter, the reaction product is heated under high temperature and reduced pressure to form a sulfonic polyester under the elimination of a diol, which is easily volatile and removed from the system under these conditions. This second step, or polycondensation step, is performed at a relatively high vacuum and generally at a temperature in the range of about 230 ° C to about 350 ° C, preferably about 250 ° C to about 310 ° C, and most preferably about 260 ° C to about 290 ° C It lasts for about 0.1 to about 6 hours, or preferably for about 0.2 to about 2 hours, until a polymer having the desired degree of polymerization (as measured by intrinsic viscosity) is obtained. The polycondensation step can be performed under reduced pressure, which is in the range of about 53 kPa (400 torr) to about 0.013 kPa (0.1 torr). Stirring or suitable conditions are used in both stages to ensure sufficient heat transfer and surface renewal of the reaction mixture. The reactions in both stages are promoted by suitable catalysts such as titanium alkoxy compounds, alkali metal hydroxides and alcoholates, salts of organic carboxylic acids, alkyl tin compounds, metal oxides and the like . A three-stage manufacturing process similar to that described in US Patent No. 5,290,631 can also be used, especially when mixed monomer and acid monomer feeds are used.

In order to ensure that the reaction of the diol component and the dicarboxylic acid component is driven by the transesterification reaction mechanism, it is preferred to use a diol component of about 1.05 to about 2.5 moles to a dicarboxylic acid component of one mole. However, those skilled in the art will understand that the ratio of the diol component to the dicarboxylic acid component is generally determined by the design of the reactor in which the reaction process is performed.

In the preparation of sulfonate polyesters by direct esterification (i.e. from the acid form of the dicarboxylic acid component), the sulfonate polyesters are obtained by mixing a dicarboxylic acid or a mixture of dicarboxylic acids with a diol component or a dicarboxylic acid. A mixture of alcohol components is prepared by reaction. The reaction is carried out at a pressure of about 7 kPa gauge (1 psig) to about 1,379 kPa gauge (200 psig), preferably less than 689 kPa (100 psig) to prepare a low molecular weight, linear chain having an average degree of polymerization of about 1.4 to about 10 Or branched chain sulfonic polyester products. The temperature employed during the direct esterification reaction is usually in the range of about 180 ° C to about 280 ° C, and more preferably in the range of about 220 ° C to about 270 ° C. This low molecular weight polymer can then be polymerized by a polycondensation reaction.

As mentioned above, sulfonate-based polyesters are advantageous for the preparation of bicomponent and multicomponent fibers with shaped cross sections. We have found that the glass transition temperature (Tg) is at least 25 ° C, 26 ° C, 27 ° C, 28 ° C, 29 ° C, 30 ° C, 31 ° C, 32 ° C, 33 ° C, 34 ° C, 35 ° C, 36 ° C, 37 ℃, 38 ℃, 39 ℃, 40 ℃, 41 ℃, 42 ℃, 43 ℃, 44 ℃, 45 ℃, 46 ℃, 47 ℃, 48 ℃, 49 ℃, 50 ℃, 51 ℃, 52 ℃, 53 ℃, Blend of sulfonate polyester or sulfonate polyester at 54 ° C, 55 ° C, 56 ° C, 57 ° C, 58 ° C, 59 ° C, 60 ° C, 61 ° C, 62 ° C, 63 ° C, 64 ° C or 65 ° C The material is particularly suitable for multi-component fibers to prevent agglomeration and fusion of the fibers during spinning and winding. For example, to obtain a sulfonate polyester having a Tg of at least 35 ° C, blends of one or more sulfonate polyesters can be used in various proportions to obtain a sulfonate polyester blend having the desired Tg. The Tg of the sulfonic polyester blend can be calculated by using a weighted average of the Tg of the sulfonic polyester component. For example, a sulfonate polyester having a Tg of 48 ° C can be blended with a weight: weight ratio of 25:75 with another sulfonate polyester having a Tg of 65 ° C to obtain a sulfonate polyester having a Tg of approximately 61 ° C. Blend.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester component of the multi-component fiber exhibits characteristics allowing at least one of the following:
(a) spinning multi-component fibers to the required low denier,
(b) the sulfonic polyesters in these multicomponent fibers are resistant to removal during spunlace of a web formed from the multicomponent fibers but are effectively removed at high temperatures after spunlace, and
(c) The multicomponent fiber is heat-set to obtain a stable, strong fabric. The use of sulfonate polyesters with a certain melt viscosity and a certain amount of sulfonate monomer residues facilitates these purposes to achieve surprising and unexpected results.

As previously discussed, sulfonate-based polyesters or sulfonate-based polyester blends used in multi-component fibers or binders may have a melt viscosity generally less than about 12,000, 10,000, 6,000, or 4,000 poise, such as at 240 ° C. And measured at a shear rate of 1 radian / second. In another aspect, the sulfonic polyester or sulfonic polyester blend exhibits between about 1,000 and 12,000 poises, more preferably between 2,000 and 6,000 poises, and most preferably between 2,500 and 4,000 poises. The melt viscosity is measured at 240 ° C and a shear rate of 1 radian per second. Prior to measuring the viscosity, the samples were dried in a vacuum oven at 60 ° C for 2 days. Melt viscosity was measured on a rheometer using a 25 mm diameter parallel plate geometry with a 1 mm gap setting. Dynamic frequency sweep is performed with a strain rate range of 1 to 400 radians / second and a 10% strain amplitude. The viscosity was then measured at 240 ° C and a strain rate of 1 radian / second.

Sulfonic polyester polymer has sulfonic monomer residue content of at least 4 or 5 mole percent and less than about 25, 20, 12 or 10 mole percent, reported as the total Percent of acid or diol residues. The sulfonic acid group monomer used in the present invention preferably has two functional groups attached to an aromatic or cycloaliphatic ring and one or more sulfonic acid ester groups, wherein the functional groups are a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof. The sodium sulfonic acid isophthalic acid single system is particularly preferred.

In addition to the sulfonic acid-based monomers previously described, the sulfonic acid-based polyester preferably contains one or more dicarboxylic acid residues and one or more diol residues, of which at least 25 moles based on the total diol residues. Ear percentage is a poly (ethylene glycol) having the structure H- (OCH ₂ -CH ₂ ) _n -OH, where n is an integer in the range of 2 to about 500, and 0 to about 20 mole percentages based on total repeating units The residue of a branched monomer having 3 or more functional groups, wherein the functional group is a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the sulfonic polyester contains about 60 to 99, 80 to 96, or 88 to 94 mole percent dicarboxylic acid residues, about 1 to 40, 4 to 20, or 6 to 12 moles. Percent sulfonic monomer residues, and 100 mol percent diol residues (there is a total of 200 mol percent, ie 100 mol percent diacid and 100 mol percent glycol). More specifically, the dicarboxyl portion of the sulfonic polyester contains terephthalic acid between about 50 to 95, 60 to 80, or 65 to 75 mole percent, about 0.5 to 49, 1 to 30, or 15 to 25 mol% between phthalic acid and 5-sodium sulfonic acid isophthalic acid (5-SSIPA) at about 1 to 40, 4 to 20 or 6 to 12 mol%. The diol portion contains about 0 to 50 mole percent diethylene glycol and about 50 to 100 mole percent ethylene glycol. An exemplary formulation according to this embodiment of the invention is described next.

The water-dispersible component of the multi-component fiber may consist essentially of the sulfonic-based polyester described above or the sulfonic-based polyester described above. However, in another embodiment, the sulfonate-based polyester of the present invention may be blended with one or more complementary polymers to modify the characteristics of the resulting multi-component fiber. Depending on the application, the supplementary polymer may or may not be water-dispersible and may be miscible or immiscible with the sulfonic polyester. If the complementary polymer is non-water-dispersible, the preferred blend is immiscible with the sulfonic acid polyester.

The term "miscible" as used herein is intended to mean that the blend has a single homogeneous amorphous phase, as indicated by a single composition-dependent Tg. For example, a first polymer that is miscible with a second polymer can be used to "plasticize" a second polymer, as described, for example, in US Patent No. 6,211,309. In contrast, the term "immiscible" as used herein means that the blend exhibits at least two random mixed phases and exhibits more than one Tg. Some polymers may be immiscible and compatible with sulfonic polyesters. Other general descriptions of miscible and immiscible polymer blends and various analytical techniques for their characterization can be found in Polymer Blends, Volumes 1 and 2, edited by DR Paul and CB Bucknall, 2000, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Non-limiting examples of water-dispersible polymers that can be blended with sulfonic polyesters are polymethacrylic acid, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyethylene-acrylic copolymer, polyvinylmethyl ether, polyvinyl alcohol, Polyethylene oxide, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, ethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose, isopropyl cellulose, methyl ether starch, polypropylene amidamine, poly ( N-vinylcaprolactam), polyethyloxazoline, poly (2-isopropyl-2-oxazoline), polyvinylmethyloxazolone, water-dispersible sulfonic polyester , Polyvinylmethyloxazolidone, poly (2,4-dimethyl-6-triazinylethylene), and ethylene oxide-propylene oxide copolymers. Examples of non-water-dispersible polymers that can be blended with sulfonic polyesters include, but are not limited to, polyolefins, such as homopolymers and copolymers of polyethylene and polypropylene; poly (ethylene terephthalate); Poly (butylene terephthalate); and polyamines such as nylon-6; polylactic acid; caprolactone; Eastar Bio® (poly (tetramethylene adipate-co-terephthalate) Esters), products of Eastman Chemical Company); polycarbonates; polyurethanes; and polyvinyl chloride.

According to our invention, blends of more than one sulfonate-based polyester can be used to adjust the end-use characteristics of the resulting multi-component fiber or non-woven product. A blend of one or more sulfonic polyesters will have a Tg of at least 25 ° C for the binder composition and a Tg of at least 35 ° C for the multicomponent fiber.

Sulfonic polyesters and complementary polymers can be blended in batch, semi-continuous, or continuous processes. Small scale batches can be easily prepared prior to melt-spinning in any high-intensity mixing device, such as a Banbury mixer, familiar to those skilled in the art. These ingredients can also be blended in a solution in a suitable solvent. Melt blending methods include blending a sulfonic polyester and a complementary polymer at a temperature sufficient to melt the polymer. The blend may be cooled and pelletized for further use or the melt blend may be directly melt-spun from the melt blend into a fiber form. The term "melt" as used herein includes, but is not limited to, only softening polyester. For melt mixing methods generally known in polymer technology, see Polymer Mixing and Compounding (editor I. Manas-Zloczower & Z. Tadmor, Carl Hanser Verlag Publisher, 1994, New York, N. Y.).

As previously discussed, the segments or domains of the multicomponent fiber may include one or more non-water-dispersible synthetic polymers. Examples of non-water-dispersible synthetic polymers that can be used in the multicomponent fiber segment include, but are not limited to, polyolefins, polyesters, copolyesters, polyamides, polylactic acids, polycaprolactones, polycarbonates, polyurethanes Esters, acrylics, cellulose esters and / or polyvinyl chloride. For example, the non-water dispersible synthetic polymer may be a polyester, such as polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene terephthalate homopolymer, polyethylene terephthalate copolymer, polymer Polybutylene terephthalate, cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid polycyclohexyl ester, polytrimethylene terephthalate, polycyclohexyl terephthalate, polytrimethylene terephthalate, and the like Thing.

In another embodiment of the invention, the non-water-dispersible polymer is derived from recycled materials. In detail, the non-water-dispersible polymer may be a recycled polyester.

In another example, the non-water dispersible synthetic polymer may be biodegradable as determined by DIN standard 54900 and / or biodegradable as determined by ASTM standard method D6340-98. Examples of biodegradable polyesters and polyester blends are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,599,858, U.S. Patent No. 5,580,911, U.S. Patent No. 5,446,079; and U.S. Patent No. 5,559,171. The term "biodegradable" as used herein with reference to non-water-dispersible synthetic polymers is understood to mean that the polymer degrades under environmental influences, such as in a compost environment, where it is suitable and verifiable as defined The time interval is defined, for example, by ASTM standard method D6340-98 named "Standard Test Methods for Determining Aerobic Biodegradation of Radiolabeled Plastic Materials in an Aqueous or Compost Environment". The non-water-dispersible synthetic polymers of the present invention can also be "biodegradable", meaning that the polymers are easily broken in a composting environment as defined, for example, by DIN standard 54900. For example, biodegradable polymers initially reduce their molecular weight in the environment through the action of heat, water, air, microorganisms, and other factors. This decrease in molecular weight results in a loss of physical properties (tensile strength) and often fiber breakage. Once the molecular weight of the polymer is sufficiently low, the monomers and oligomers are subsequently assimilated by the microorganisms. In an aerobic environment, these monomers or oligomers eventually oxidize to CO ₂ , H ₂ O, and new cell biomass. In an anaerobic environment, the monomers or oligomers eventually converted to CO _2, H _2, acetate, methane, and cell biomass.

In addition, the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer may include an aliphatic-aromatic polyester abbreviated herein as "AAPE". As used herein, the term "aliphatic-aromatic polyester" means a polyester which comprises aliphatic dicarboxylic acids, cycloaliphatic dicarboxylic acids, aliphatic diols, cycloaliphatic diols, aromatic diols And a mixture of residues of aromatic dicarboxylic acids. The term "non-aromatic" as used herein with respect to the dicarboxylic acid and diol monomers of the present invention means the carboxyl or hydroxyl groups of the monomers that are not linked via an aromatic core. For example, adipic acid does not contain an aromatic core in its main chain (ie, a chain of carbon atoms attached to a carboxylic acid group), and thus adipic acid is "non-aromatic". In contrast, the term "aromatic" means that a dicarboxylic acid or diol contains an aromatic core in its main chain, such as terephthalic acid or 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid. "Non-aromatic" is therefore intended to include both aliphatic and cycloaliphatic structures, such as glycols and dicarboxylic acids, which contain a straight or branched chain or cyclic arrangement of carbon atoms as the main chain, the straight or branched chain The chain or cyclic arrangement may be saturated or paraffin-based, unsaturated (ie containing non-aromatic carbon-carbon double bonds) or acetylenic (ie containing carbon-carbon triple bonds). Therefore, non-aromatic is intended to include straight and branched chain structures (referred to herein as "aliphatic") and cyclic structures (referred to herein as "alicyclic" or "cycloaliphatic"). However, the term "non-aromatic" is not intended to exclude any aromatic substituents that can be attached to the backbone of an aliphatic or cycloaliphatic diol or dicarboxylic acid. In the present invention, the difunctional carboxylic acid is usually an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid such as adipic acid, or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid such as terephthalic acid. The difunctional hydroxy compound may be a cycloaliphatic diol, such as 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol; a linear or branched aliphatic diol, such as 1,4-butanediol; or an aromatic diol, such as Hydroquinone.

AAPE can be a linear or branched random copolyester and / or an extended copolyester containing diol residues that include one or more substituted or unsubstituted linear or branched chains Residues of diols selected from the group consisting of aliphatic diols having 2 to 8 carbon atoms, polyalkylene ether diols having 2 to 8 carbon atoms, and cyclic lipids having about 4 to about 12 carbon atoms Group diols. A substituted diol will typically contain 1 to 4 substituents independently selected from the group consisting of halo, C ₆ -C ₁₀ aryl, and C ₁ -C ₄ alkoxy. Examples of diols that can be used include, but are not limited to, ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediol, 1,3-butanediol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, polyethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,6-hexanediene Alcohol, thiodiethanol, 1,3-cyclohexanedimethanol, 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, 2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanediol, triethyl Diethylene glycol and tetraethylene glycol. AAPE also contains diacid residues that contain one or more substituted or unsubstituted straight or branched chains based on the total mole number of diacid residues. A residue of a non-aromatic dicarboxylic acid selected from aliphatic dicarboxylic acids containing 2 to 12 carbon atoms and cycloaliphatic acids containing about 5 to 10 carbon atoms. The substituted non-aromatic dicarboxylic acid will typically contain from 1 to about 4 substituents selected from the group consisting of halo, C ₆ -C ₁₀ aryl, and C ₁ -C ₄ alkoxy. Non-limiting examples of non-aromatic diacids include malonic acid, succinic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid, pimelic acid, azelaic acid, sebacic acid, fumaric acid, 2,2-dimethyl Glutaric acid, suberic acid, 1,3-cyclopentanedicarboxylic acid, 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, 1,3-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, diglycolic acid, itaconic acid, maleic acid Diacid and 2,5-norbornane-dicarboxylic acid. In addition to non-aromatic dicarboxylic acids, AAPE contains from about 1 to about 65 mole percent, based on the total moles of the diacid residues, containing one or more substituted or unsubstituted 6 to about 10 carbon atoms. Residues of aromatic dicarboxylic acids. In the case where substituted aromatic dicarboxylic acid, which will typically contain 1 to about 4 substituents selected from halo, C ₆ -C ₁₀ aryl group and C ₁ -C ₄ alkoxy group of substituents. Non-limiting examples of aromatic dicarboxylic acids that can be used in the AAPE of the present invention are terephthalic acid, isophthalic acid, 5-sulfonic acid isophthalic acid salts, and 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid. More preferably, the non-aromatic dicarboxylic acid will include adipic acid, the aromatic dicarboxylic acid will include terephthalic acid, and the diol will include 1,4-butanediol.

Other possible compositions of AAPE are based on the following diols and dicarboxylic acids (or their polyesters forming equivalents, such as diesters) based on 100 mole percent diacid content and 100 mole percent glycol content Percentage of preparation:
(1) glutaric acid (about 30 to about 75 mole percentage), terephthalic acid (about 25 to about 70 mole percentage), 1,4-butanediol (about 90 to 100 mole percentage) and modification Diols (0 to 10 mole percent);
(2) Succinic acid (about 30 to about 95 mole percent), terephthalic acid (about 5 to about 70 mole percent), 1,4-butanediol (about 90 to 100 mole percent), and modified Diols (0 to about 10 mole percent); and
(3) Adipic acid (about 30 to about 75 mole percent), terephthalic acid (about 25 to about 70 mole percent), 1,4-butanediol (about 90 to 100 mole percent), and modified Diols (0 to about 10 mole percent).

The modified diol is preferably selected from 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, triethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, and neopentyl glycol. The most preferred AAPE is a linear, branched or extended copolyester comprising about 50 to about 60 mole percent adipic acid residues, about 40 to about 50 mole percent terephthalic acid residues and at least 95 Molar percentage of 1,4-butanediol residues. Even better, adipic acid residues account for about 55 to about 60 moles, terephthalic acid residues for about 40 to about 45 moles, and diol residues for about 95 moles 1,4 -Butanediol residue. These compositions are commercially available under the trademark EASTAR BIO® copolyester from Eastman Chemical Company, Kingsport, TN, and under the trademark ECOFLEX® from BASF Corporation.

In addition, specific examples of preferred AAPE include: poly (tetra-methyleneglutarate-co-terephthalate), which contains (a) 50 mole percent glutaric acid residues, 50 moles Percent terephthalic acid residue and 100 mol percent 1,4-butanediol residue, (b) 60 mol percent glutaric acid residue, 40 mol percent terephthalic acid residue and 100 mol percent 1,4-butanediol residues, or (c) 40 mole percent glutaric acid residues, 60 mole percent terephthalic acid residues, and 100 mole percent 1,4-butanediol residues; poly (Tetramethylene succinate-co-terephthalate), which contains (a) 85 mole percent succinic acid residues, 15 mole percent terephthalic acid residues, and 100 mole percent 1 , 4-butanediol residue or (b) 70 mole percent succinic acid residue, 30 mole percent terephthalic acid residue, and 100 mole percent 1,4-butanediol residue; poly ( Ethyl succinate-co-terephthalate), which contains 70 mole percent succinic acid residues, 30 mole percent terephthalic acid residues and 100 mole percent ethylene glycol residues; And poly (tetramethylene adipate-co-terephthalate Ester) containing (a) 85 mole percent adipic acid residues, 15 mole percent terephthalic acid residues, and 100 mole percent 1,4-butanediol residues; or (b) 55 moles Percent adipic acid residue, 45 mol percent terephthalic acid residue, and 100 mol percent 1,4-butanediol residue.

AAPE preferably contains from about 10 to about 1,000 repeating units and more preferably from about 15 to about 600 repeating units. AAPE may have an inherent viscosity of about 0.4 to about 2.0 dL / g, or better about 0.7 to about 1.6 dL / g, such as using 0.5 g of copolyester at 100 ° C in 100 ml of phenol / tetrachloroethane at a temperature of 25 ° C. Measured in 60/40 weight solution concentration.

AAPE may optionally contain residues of a branching agent. Based on the total moles of the diacid or diol residues (depending on whether the branching agent contains a carboxyl or hydroxyl group), the mole percentage of the branching agent ranges from about 0 to about 2 moles, preferably about 0.1. To about 1 mole percentage, and most preferably about 0.1 to about 0.5 mole percentage. The branching agent preferably has a weight average molecular weight of about 50 to about 5,000, more preferably about 92 to about 3,000, and functional groups of about 3 to about 6. The branching agent may be, for example, a polyol having 3 to 6 hydroxyl groups, a polycarboxylic acid having 3 or 4 carboxyl groups (or an ester forming an equivalent group) or an ester of a hydroxy acid having a total of 3 to 6 hydroxyl groups and carboxyl groups化 Residues. In addition, AAPE can be branched by adding peroxide during reactive extrusion.

The non-water dispersible ingredients of the multi-component fiber of the present invention may also contain other conventional additives and ingredients that do not adversely affect its end use. For example, additives include, but are not limited to, starches, fillers, light and thermal stabilizers, antistatic agents, extrusion aids, dyes, anti-counterfeiting marks, slip agents, tougheners, adhesion promoters, oxidation stabilizers, UV Absorbent, colorant, pigment, opacifier (matting agent), optical brightener, filler, nucleating agent, plasticizer, viscosity modifier, interface modifier, antimicrobial agent, defoamer, lubricant Agents, thermostabilizers, emulsifiers, disinfectants, cold flow inhibitors, branching agents, oils, waxes and catalysts.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the multi-component fiber will contain less than 10% by weight of anti-sticking additive based on the total weight of the multi-component fiber or non-woven item. Multicomponent fibers may contain less than 10, 9, 5, 3, or 1% by weight of pigments or fillers based on the total weight of the multicomponent fibers. A colorant (sometimes referred to as a colorant) may be added to impart a neutral hue and / or brightness required by the non-water-dispersible polymer. When colored fibers are required, pigments or colorants may be included in the preparation of the non-water-dispersible polymer or they may be melt blended with the preformed non-water-dispersible polymer. A preferred method of including a colorant is to use a coloring agent having a thermally stable organic coloring compound containing a reactive group, so that the colorant is copolymerized and incorporated into a non-water-dispersible polymer to improve its hue. For example, colorants can be copolymerized in the polymer chain, such as dyes having reactive hydroxyl and / or carboxyl groups, including but not limited to blue and red substituted anthraquinones.

The multicomponent fiber of the present invention can be made by any method known in the art. In one embodiment of the present invention, a method for preparing a multi-component fiber is provided. The method includes spinning a multi-component fiber having a shaped cross-section. The multi-component fiber includes at least one water-dispersible polymer and a plurality of fibers including one. Or domains of non-water-dispersible polymer; wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by water-dispersible polymers inserted between the domains; and wherein the water-dispersible polymer is in a proportion of not more than 55% of the water-dispersible polymer It exists around the outer cross section of the multicomponent fiber.

The fibers of the invention according to the invention can be made via different techniques. The fibers of the invention can be produced, for example, via melt spinning. The fibers of the invention according to the invention may be continuous filaments, or in the alternative, the fibers of the invention may be cut fibers. The continuous filaments may be further crimped as appropriate, and then cut to produce cut fibers.

In melt spinning, water-dispersible polymers and non-water-dispersible polymers plus any other polymer are melt-extruded and pressurized through pores in a metal plate called a spinning head to enter air or other gases The multi-component fiber is prepared by cooling and solidifying in air or other gas. This process is called extrusion or spinning. Spinning can also include the process of tangling filaments together to make a yarn. The cured filaments can be drawn out by a rotating roller or a godet roller and wound on a spool.

The multi-component fiber of the present invention can be used for preparing yarn. Yarn is defined as a continuous fiber strand suitable for weaving, knitting, fusing, or otherwise winding to make a textile, such as a fabric. In one embodiment of the present invention, the multi-component fiber is a filament yarn. Filament yarns are first drawn to a continuous fiber length and can be twisted during post-processing. In another embodiment of the present invention, the multicomponent fiber is cut into fiber lengths and then twisted into a continuous strand called a staple fiber yarn.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-component fiber may be combined with at least one other fiber to prepare a yarn. The yarn may be a staple or filament yarn. Other fibers may include, but are not limited to, cotton, linen, silk, sisal / grass, leather, acetate, acrylic, modified polyacrylonitrile fibers, polylactic acid, sharon, cellulose fiber pulp, inorganic fibers (e.g. glass , Carbon, boron, ceramics, and combinations thereof), polyester fibers, nylon fibers, polyolefin fibers, rayon fibers, soluble fibers, cellulose ester fibers, post-consumer recycled fibers, elastic fibers, and combinations thereof.

Optionally, multicomponent fibers can be post-processed by various techniques, such as drawing or texturing. The drawn fibers can be textured and rolled to form fluffy continuous filaments. One step technology is referred to in the art as spinning-drawing-texturing. Other embodiments include flat filament (non-textured) yarns, or cut fibers that are crimped or uncurled.

Texturing, as used herein, refers to processing flat filaments (or fibers) so that they are textured to have loops, spirals, curls, curls, or other textures along the length of the filament (ie, "variants"). Texturing filaments or fibers increases the bulk, porosity, elasticity, and / or softness of the fibers. Different textures (or degrees) can provide different characteristics for filaments and fibers. Texturing and texturizing are used interchangeably in this document. In Figure 5, various types of textured fibers or yarns are shown.

Filaments and fibers are then used to make the yarn. Filaments or fibers can be combined with other filaments or fibers to make yarns, and more than one type of yarn can be combined to form new yarns by processes known to those skilled in the art, such as texturing, winding, and similar techniques. .

Depending on the desired characteristics, processes such as the following are used to texture stretched filaments or fibers to add curl or texture and fluff to the fibers: friction disc stretch texturing (also known as false twist texturing), air jet texturing , Knife edge texturing, stuffing box texturing and stretch winding.

Many commercial texturing operations are designed for high production yields and therefore use long heaters that can reach high temperatures. This allows a high draw ratio of partially oriented yarns while achieving high spinning speeds. The use of short electric heaters in the friction disc stretch texturing process is not as common as longer heaters, because the use of shorter heaters reduces or limits the amount of yarn processed.

For some fibers, such as multi-component fibers with water-dispersible components, standard operating conditions and high temperatures in the heating zone will not allow the texturing process to run successfully. If the temperature is too high, any twisting in the fibers or filaments can cause the entire yarn filament bundle to melt as it travels through the heater. Conventional process temperatures significantly reduce torsional elasticity, which causes yarns to break due to other twisting forces and / or longitudinal strains caused by tensile forces.

It is rare to run heaters and provide highly oriented input / feed yarns (HOY) at temperatures below 140 ° C, but the inventors have discovered that by providing highly oriented yarns and reducing the heating temperature, it is possible to provide suitable For other uses, such as textured fibers for subsequent yarn construction steps, non-wovens, weaving and / or knitting applications.

In one embodiment, the fibers or filaments of the present invention are textured using a friction disc texturing process. An example schematic of the friction disc texturing process is shown in FIG. 12. In one embodiment, the friction disc texturing process includes the steps of: providing fibers or filaments, such as the multi-component fibers of the present invention, to a first region in which the fibers are heated, stretched, and twisted; and the fibers are provided as appropriate To the second zone where the fibers are heated; and finally the fibers are gathered or wound for further processing or use, such as for fabrics. In the first zone, the fibers are heated and the heating temperature is lower than the temperature of the fibers used for the non-aqueous dispersing component, such as at least 10%, or at least 15%, at least 20%, less than the conventional heating temperature for the following fibers, At least 25%, at least 30%, at least 35%, at least 40%, at least 45%, at least 50%, at least 55%, or at least 60%: for a given type of equipment, the non-aqueous dispersing component has the same Non-water-dispersible polymer with the same number of total filaments in the fiber, and the same total denier. For example, for conventional fibers, such as polyester fibers, the heating element in the first zone can be operated at a temperature of about 180 to 200 ° C or higher. For the texturing process of the present invention, depending on the type of fiber, and the amount of water-dispersible substance and the required characteristics in the embodiment, the heating element 3 in the friction disc texturing process is at a lower temperature, such as about 85 to Operate at a temperature of 140 ° C.

In an exemplary friction disc texturing process, the fibers or filaments may be provided to the first zone via an input shaft or roller (2a, 2b) from the bobbin 1 or other means known in the art for containing filaments. The first zone is located between the rollers 2 and 6 and contains at least one heater, optionally at least one cooling plate, and at least one friction disc. The input shaft (or feed rollers 2a, 2b) generally provides uniform tension when feeding fibers or filaments into the texturing process.

The fiber may be any type of fiber, such as partially oriented yarn (POY) or fiber, highly oriented yarn or fiber (HOY), or fully drawn yarn or fiber (FDY). Partially oriented yarns do not use yarns formed by significant stretching or heat setting. This results in a yarn with very little orientation. Highly oriented yarns are yarns that have been formed using some stretching and heat setting. This results in a yarn with a certain amount of orientation. Fully drawn yarns are yarns formed using significant draw and heat setting. This results in a yarn with a large number of orientations.

The fibers may be provided to the first zone by any means known in the art to provide tension on the fibers as they are fed to the texturing process. The first or main heater 3 or heating element in the first zone may be a contact or non-contact heating element, such as an electric heater (such as a short electric heater), a heating tube, and the like. The heating element may be 1 to 3 meters long in some embodiments, although other heaters are known in the art.

In the first zone, the fibers or filaments are heated just enough to allow the polymer chains to move, which keeps the fibers "curled" or textured, but not overheated to "melt" the polymer. If the temperature is too high, the combination of temperature and tensile force can cause multi-component fibers to break, knot, and / or melt or stick together, and the texturing process is inefficient. If the temperature is too low (ie not hot enough to warm or heat the fibers to impart sufficient thermal energy), the texturing process will be unsuccessful and the resulting fibers will not have the desired texture or may break. The heating zone 3 must be hot enough to allow the fibers to stretch without breaking.

In an embodiment, in the first zone, the fibers are heated and twisted. In embodiments, heating and twisting may occur substantially simultaneously, while in other embodiments, heating and twisting may be controlled and occur separately. In addition, after heating and twisting the fibers, the fibers can be cooled by contact or by non-contact means. In an embodiment, in the first zone, the fibers are heated, drawn, and twisted. In embodiments, heating, stretching, and twisting can occur substantially simultaneously, while in other embodiments, heating, stretching, and twisting can be controlled and occur separately, step by step.

Drawing refers to the process of drawing fiber filaments. This can be done by passing the fibers through a series of rollers, such as a godet roller pair, where each subsequent roller moves faster than the previous group to elongate or "stretch" the fibers. Stretch the fibers to the required strength, toughness, and elastic properties. Depending on the fiber type and desired characteristics, drawing can be done cold or hot. Stretching helps align or orient the molecules in the fiber. The required draw ratio or amount will vary depending on the starting fiber and the desired fiber characteristics, such as denier and strength.

The first zone may also contain a cooling zone or cooling device 4 to cool the fibers. By providing crimping or texturing, the fibers will remain crimped even when untwisted or released from the textured state. The cooling device 4 may include a cooling plate, a water cooling device (such as a water contact pipe), an air cooling device, or a combination of cooling devices, and may be cooled by a contact or non-contact method. The cooling device 4 or cooling zone removes heat or transfers heat away from the fibers to reduce the temperature, and any cooling device or method known in the art can be used.

The first zone contains at least one twisting unit 5 or other member to impart twist to the filaments in the fiber. The twisting unit 5 may include a friction disc or shaft or other device that contacts the fibers to impart twist to the yarn. The twisting unit 5 imparts twist, which is generally returned to the input shaft or the feed rollers 2a, 2b in the form of "S" or "Z" twists (clockwise or counterclockwise) and advances to the center in the opposite direction The shafts or rollers 6a, 6b are twisted in reverse. In an embodiment, the fibers or filaments are twisted upon heating (in the heating zone 3) to texture them. This is called false twist because there is minimal and, in some cases, no net twist in the fibers or filaments after the first zone.

The heating device 3, the cooling device 4 and the twisting unit 5 are spatially independent. In an embodiment, the heating device 3, the cooling device 4 and the twisting unit 5 are continuously positioned in the manufacturing process (such as shown in FIG. 12).

After the first zone, the fibers may be provided in the second zone after passing another set of rollers 6a, 6b (or central axis) as appropriate. The second zone may be a post-heating zone 7 and it may include any of the same types of heating elements as the first heating zone, or the second heating zone 7 may include a heated godet roller or other heating roller. In the second heating zone 7 (or post-heating zone), when present, the heating temperature may be the same as that used for conventional processes, or the temperature may be lower than that used for conventional fibers, such as fibers that do not contain water-dispersible components temperature. In the second heating zone 7, the temperature may be at least 5% lower, or at least 10%, at least 15%, at least 20%, at least 25%, at least 30%, at least 35%, at least 40%, at least 45%, at least 50%, at least 55%, or at least 60%: for a given type of equipment, it contains no water-dispersible components, has the same non-water-dispersible polymer, and has the same number of fibers in the fiber Total filaments, and the same total Danny. For conventional fibers, such as polyester fibers, the second zone 7 can be operated at a temperature of about 180 ° C or higher to provide non-contact heating of the fibers. For multi-component fibers, in some embodiments, depending on the type of fiber, the amount of water-dispersible substance, and the desired characteristics of the fiber, the second heating zone 7 operates at a lower temperature, such as for contact heating at about 60 ° C Temperatures up to 140 ° C, or about 80 ° C up to 150 ° C for non-contact heating. In other embodiments, the second heating zone may operate at the same temperature as that used for conventional fibers, such as polyester fibers.

In embodiments where no second heating is required, the second zone 7 can be set to "off" to avoid additional heat. In an embodiment, the second zone 7 helps control the fiber shrinkage and crimp level. In addition, controlling the speed (or speed difference) between the central shafts 6a, 6b and the super-feed shafts or rollers 8a, 8b (or other means for taking up the fiber) helps to control or adjust the fiber shrinkage and crimping level. In an embodiment, a second heating zone 7 is present and provides heat to stabilize the fibers or reduce the level of fiber shrinkage.

After the optional second heating zone 7 and rollers 8a, 8b are selected, the fibers are then rolled up on a bobbin 10 or other device to collect the textured yarn for further use or processing. Depending on the required device, there may be a processing agent device 9 or other rollers or devices not shown, as appropriate. Other devices may include staggered air jets.

In an embodiment, multiple different types of fibers can be textured at the same time. In another aspect of the invention, two or more fibers can be co-textured or textured simultaneously in a process similar to the process shown in FIG. 12. Depending on the fibers, additional fibers are fed into a separate first zone with a suitable heating temperature. Each fiber will have its own heating zone 3, and the temperature and conditions of the heating zone for any other fiber will depend on the composition of the fiber. After each heating zone 3, optionally used cooling zone 4 and twisting unit 5, additional fibers can be blended or bonded together by any means known in the art. Other untextured fibers can also be blended or combined with the textured fibers.

The additional fibers may have a different composition and / or configuration (e.g., length, minimum transverse dimension, maximum transverse dimension, cross-sectional shape, or a combination thereof) as compared to the multicomponent fiber and may have Any type of fiber known in the art. In one embodiment of the present invention, the other fibers may be selected from the group consisting of cotton, linen, silk, sisal / grass, leather, acetate, acrylic, modified polyacrylonitrile fiber, polylactic acid, satin Fiber, cellulose fiber slurry, inorganic fiber (e.g. glass, carbon, boron, ceramic, and combinations thereof), polyester fiber, nylon fiber, polyolefin fiber, rayon fiber, soluble fiber, cellulose ester fiber, consumer Post-recycling fibers, elastic fibers, and combinations thereof. Other fibers can be at least 1, 2, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, or 60% by weight of the total fiber content and / or the total fiber content does not exceed 99, 98, 95, 90, 85, 80, It is present in an amount of 70, 60 or 50% by weight. In one embodiment, the other fibers are selected from polyester fibers, nylon fibers, and elastic fibers. In embodiments, other fibers may or may not be textured.

In another embodiment, the fibers are textured using a jet texturing process. In an air-jet texturing process, fibers or filaments are provided into a region or chamber at high speed, where a high-pressure stream of fluid, such as compressed air, is blown into the chamber. The air separates the filaments and forms loops, curls, and / or random tangles, which remain behind the chamber to form texturing. The fibers or filaments are fed into the chamber at a superfeed rate (ie, at a rate faster than the rate at which the fibers or filaments are removed from the air-jet portion or area). The amount of texturing can be controlled by processing conditions such as air pressure, type and size of air nozzles, fiber type, and the like. Multiple fibers (or feeds) can be provided in the chamber to provide a processed yarn with more than one fiber tangled together, such as a corespun or base yarn.

In another embodiment, the fiber of the present invention is textured using a stuffing box texturing process. In the stuffing box texturing process, fibers or filaments pass through a heating "box" or cavity that provides a random wave-like crimp pattern in the fiber or filament as it is heated. The fibers are fed at a superfeed rate (ie, at a faster rate than the rate at which the fibers are removed from the box or chamber), causing them to curl when in the box. After leaving the box, the crimped or textured fibers are cooled using any cooling method known in the art.

In another embodiment, the fiber of the present invention is textured using a knife edge texturing process. In the knife-edge texturing process, fibers or filaments are heated and pulled across an acute edge or "knife" at an acute angle to provide a curled appearance (similar to a strip that has been pulled across a pair of scissors blades). After pulling the filament across the knife, the filament is cooled to "fix" the texture and retain curl or elasticity.

After texturing, any of the textured fibers or yarns can then be further processed or combined with other yarns using processes such as bending, twisting and covering. It is also possible to dye the yarn package.

The multicomponent fiber of the present invention can be used to make any article known in the art. Articles of the invention according to the invention include, but are not limited to, non-woven, knitted, knitted, knitted, and combinations thereof. It is also possible to make synthetic fabrics, such as synthetic suede, comprising the multicomponent fibers of the present invention.

The knitted fabric of the present invention according to the present invention can be made from the multicomponent fiber of the present invention via different techniques. These methods include, but are not limited to, weaving, braiding, and knitting processes.

In the weaving process, two sets of yarns (ie, warp and weft) are entangled to form the knitted fabric of the present invention. The way in which the two sets of yarns intertwine determines the weaving. The weaving process can be realized by different equipment, including but not limited to dobby looms, jacquard shuttle looms and force looms. By using various combinations of the five basic weaving methods (i.e., plain weave, twill weave, satin weave, jacquard, and fleece), it is possible to produce a variety of configurations with almost no restrictions.

In the knitting process, the fabric of the present invention is formed by interconnecting a series of loops or one or more yarns to form a loop. The two main categories of knitting include but are not limited to warp and weft.

Warp knitting is a type of knitting in which yarns generally travel longitudinally in a fabric. For each needle, the yarn is prepared as a warp on a bundle of one or more yarns. However, weft knitting is a common type of knitting in which a continuous thread travels transversely in the fabric, making all loops in one process. Weft type is loop and flat knit.

Knitting is a method of making fabrics where the interlacing is at an angle other than 90 degrees. Knitting is the interweaving or joining of three or more independent strands of one or more materials in a diagonal overlapping pattern. Compared to the weaving process, which usually involves two independent vertical strand groups (warp and weft), the knitting fabric is usually long and narrow, and each component strand is functionally superior in zigzag forward by overlapping a large number of other strands Effect, resulting in intersection angles other than vertical.

Woven, knitted, knitted, or combined fabrics can be used in any article known in the art. Woven, knitted or knitted items can be used for any type of clothing, footwear, home decor items, military applications and technical applications. Apparel may include sports and outdoor apparel, industrial apparel, and everyday use apparel. Examples of sports and outdoor clothing include, but are not limited to, base layers, jackets and vests, knitted sports and fishing shirts, pants and shorts, socks, accessories, swimwear and mid layers, sweaters and sweat shirts. Examples of industrial apparel include military exercise apparel, clean room apparel, personal protective equipment, medical sheets and surgical gowns, industrial uniforms, and prescription compression orthotics. Examples of everyday clothing include, but are not limited to, underwear, jackets and vests, suits, dresses, oxford and collared shirts, skirts, tops, shirts, leggings, leggings, pants, shorts, and jeans. Footwear includes, but is not limited to, sandals, boots, hiking boots, trail running shoes, toboggan boots, other sports and outdoor footwear, tennis shoes, business shoes, work boots, other daily and sports / leisure shoes. Examples of household decorative items include, but are not limited to, accessories, awnings, bathroom amenities, bed linen, bedspreads and covers, blankets and rugs, broad rugs, carpet backings, curtains, fabric mantles, fiber-filled pads, kitchens Use single towel fabric, lampshade, lining, mattress, mattress cloth, oriental folk and designer rugs, outdoor rugs / upholstery, beading (stripes), tile blankets and rugs, sofa covers, tablecloths and linens , Interior decorations, wall coverings, wall tapestries, rags and woven rugs, and blocks. Technical applications include, but are not limited to, barrier fabrics, geotextiles, and automotive fabrics. Examples of barrier fabrics include, but are not limited to, clean room fabrics, filters, flags and banners, packaging, and tape. Automotive fabrics include, but are not limited to, automotive interior trim, airbags, and other automotive fabrics. Geotextiles include permeable fabrics that can be separated, filtered, strengthened, protected, or drawn when used in combination with soil.

Non-woven fabrics according to the invention can be made via different techniques. These methods include, but are not limited to, a meltblown process, a spunbond process, a carded fiber web process, an airlaid process, a hot calender process, a glue bonding process, a hot air bonding process, a needle punching process, a hydroentanglement process, Electrospinning process and its combination.

In the meltblown process, the non-woven fabric of the present invention is formed by extruding molten water-dispersible polymers and non-water-dispersible polymers, and any other polymers known in the art, through a mold, and then using heat, The high-speed air or stream thins the resulting filaments and / or breaks, as appropriate, to form short or long fiber lengths collected on a moving screen, where the fiber lengths stick during cooling.

In the alternative, the meltblown process generally includes the following steps: (a) extruding the strands from the spinning head; (b) using a high-speed heated air stream to simultaneously quench the polymer stream immediately below the spinning head and Thinning; (c) Collecting the stretched strands in a mesh on a perforated interface. Meltblown webs can be bonded by a variety of methods, including but not limited to self-bonding, that is, self-bonding without any further processing, hot calendering process, glue bonding process, hot air bonding process, needling process, water Barb process and its combination.

In the spunbond process, the manufacture of non-woven fabrics includes the following steps: (a) extruding the strands of water-dispersible and non-water-dispersible polymers and any other polymer known in the art from the spinning head; (b) quench the strand with an air stream that is generally cooled to promote solidification of the molten strand; (c) thin the filament by advancing the filament through the quench zone with tensile tension, the Tensile tension can be applied by pneumatically entraining the filaments in an air stream or by winding the filaments around a mechanical stretching roller of the type commonly used in the textile fiber industry; (d) collecting the stretched strands on a perforated interface Nets, such as moving screens or perforated transmission belts; and (e) bonding the nets of loose strands into a non-woven fabric. Adhesion can be achieved by a variety of means, including but not limited to a hot calendering process, a glue bonding process, a hot air bonding process, a needle punching process, a hydroentanglement process, and combinations thereof.

The multi-component fiber of the present invention can be used for preparing various non-woven articles, including filter media (such as HEPA filter, ULPA filter, coalescing filter, liquid filter, desalting filter, automobile filter, coffee filter, tea bag and vacuum Dust bag), battery separator, personal hygiene items, sanitary napkins, tampons, diapers, disposable wipes (e.g. car wipes, baby wipes, hand and body wipes, floor cleaning wipes, facial wipes, Toddler wipes, dust removal and polishing wipes, and nail polish removal wipes), flexible packaging (e.g. envelopes, food packaging, multilayer bags and final sterilized medical packaging), geotextiles (e.g. weed barriers, irrigation barrier , Corrosion barriers and seed support media), building and construction materials (e.g. housing encapsulation, moisture barrier film, gypsum board, wallpaper, asphalt, paper, roof liners and decorative materials), surgical and medical materials (e.g. surgery sheets and Surgical gowns, bone support media and tissue support media), security paper (e.g. banknotes, gambling and lottery paper, banknotes and checks), cardboard, recycled cardboard, synthetic leather and suede, steam Roof hoods, personal protective clothing, sound insulation media, concrete stiffeners, flexible preforms for compression-molded composite materials, electrical materials (e.g. transformer boards, cable wraps and fillers, slot insulation, capacitor paper and lamp shades) , Catalytic support films, thermal insulation, labels, food packaging materials (e.g., aseptic, liquid packaging boards, tobacco, release pouches and packaging bags, grease-resistant bakeable boards, paper cups, food packaging and single-sided coating) and printing and publishing Paper (such as waterproof and tear-resistant printing paper, trade books, banners, maps and charts, opaque paper and carbonless paper). In one embodiment, the non-woven item is selected from the group consisting of a battery separator, a high-efficiency filter, and a high-strength paper.

Other non-woven articles and processes for manufacturing such non-woven articles are disclosed in the following: US Patent No. 6,989,193, US Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0282008, US Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0194047, US Patent No. 7,687,143, US Patent Application No. 2008/0311815, and US Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0160859, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The adhesive dispersion can be applied to the non-woven article by any method known in the art. In one embodiment, the adhesive dispersion is applied to the non-woven article as an aqueous dispersion by spraying or rolling the adhesive dispersion onto the non-woven article. After the adhesive dispersion is applied, the nonwoven article and the adhesive dispersion may be subjected to a drying step in order to allow the adhesive to coagulate.

The adhesive dispersion may include a synthetic resin adhesive and / or a phenol-based resin adhesive. Synthetic resin adhesives are selected from the group consisting of acrylic copolymers, styrenic copolymers, styrene-butadiene copolymers, vinyl copolymers, polyurethanes, sulfonic polyesters, and combination. In one embodiment, the binder may comprise a blend of different sulfonate polyesters with different sulfonate monomer content. For example, at least one of the sulfonic polyesters contains at least 15 mol percent of sulfonic monomers and at least 45 mol percent of CHDM (considering first spelling) and / or in the sulfonic polyester At least one of them contains less than 10 mole percentage of sulfonic monomer and at least 70 mole percentage of CHDM. The amount of sulfonic monomers present in the sulfonic polyester greatly affects its water permeability. In another embodiment, the binder may be composed of a sulfonate polyester blend comprising at least one hydrophilic sulfonate polyester and at least one hydrophobic sulfonate polyester. An example of a hydrophilic sulfonic polyester that can be used as a binder is Eastek 1100® manufactured by EASTMAN. Similarly, examples of hydrophobic sulfonic polyesters suitable for use as a binder include Eastek 1200® manufactured by EASTMAN. These two sulfonic polyesters can be blended accordingly to optimize the water permeability of the adhesive. Depending on the desired end use of the non-woven item, the adhesive may be hydrophilic or hydrophobic.

Undissolved or dehydrated sulfonic polyesters are known to form a strong adhesive bond with a large number of substrates, including but not limited to staple fiber pulp, cotton, acrylics, concrete, soluble fibers, PLA (polylactic acid), acetic acid Cellulose, cellulose acetate propionate, poly (ethylene terephthalate), poly (butylene) terephthalate, poly (trimethylene) terephthalate, poly ( (Cyclohexyl) terephthalate, copolyester, polyamide (such as nylon), stainless steel, aluminum, treated polyolefin, PAN (polyacrylonitrile), and polycarbonate. Therefore, the sulfonic-based polyester serves as an excellent adhesive for non-woven articles. Therefore, when using sulfonate-based polyester adhesives, our novel non-woven articles can have multiple functionalities.

The non-woven article may further include a coating. After the non-woven article and optionally the adhesive dispersion are dried, the coating can be applied to the non-woven article. Coatings can include decorative coatings, printing inks, barrier coatings, adhesive coatings, or heat seal coatings. In another example, the coating may include a liquid barrier and / or a microbial barrier.

After manufacturing the non-woven article, adding optional adhesives, and / or after adding optional coatings, the non-woven articles may undergo a heat setting step that includes heating the non-woven articles to at least 100 ° C. And more preferably a temperature of at least about 120 ° C. The heat setting step releases internal fiber stress and helps to make dimensionally stable fabric products. Preferably, when the heat-set material is reheated to a temperature that heats the heat-set material during the heat-setting step, it exhibits a surface area shrinkage of less than about 10, 5, or 1 percent of its original surface area. However, if the non-woven article is subjected to heat setting, the non-woven article may not be repulpable after use and / or may not be recovered by repulping the non-woven article.

The term "repulpable" as used herein refers to any non-woven item that has not been subjected to heat setting and is capable of decomposing at 1.2 percent consistency at 3,000, rpm, or 15,000 revolutions at 3,000 rpm according to the TAPPI standard.

In another aspect of the present invention, the non-woven article may further include at least one or more other fibers. Other fibers may have a different composition and / or configuration than the ribbon fibers (e.g., length, minimum lateral dimension, maximum lateral dimension, cross-sectional shape, or a combination thereof) and may have this technology depending on the type of non-woven item to be manufactured Any type of fiber known in the art. In an embodiment of the present invention, other fibers may be selected from the group consisting of cellulose fiber slurry, inorganic fibers (such as glass, carbon, boron, ceramics, and combinations thereof), polyester fibers, nylon fibers, Polyolefin fibers, rayon fibers, soluble fibers, cellulose ester fibers, post-consumer recycled fibers, and combinations thereof. Non-woven items may include at least 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40 or 60% by weight of non-woven items and / or no more than 99, 98, 95, 90, 85, 80, 70, 60 of non-woven items Or 50% by weight of other fibers. In one embodiment, the other fibrous cellulose fibers comprise at least 10, 25, or 40% by weight and / or no more than 80, 70, 60, or 50% by weight of the non-woven article. Cellulose fibers may include hardwood pulp fibers, softwood pulp fibers, and / or regenerated cellulose fibers. In another embodiment, at least one of the other fibers is a glass fiber having a minimum transverse dimension of less than 30, 25, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 or 1 micron.

The non-woven article may further include one or more additives. Additives may be added to the wet pulp board of non-water-dispersible microfibers before the wet pulp board is subjected to a wet-laid or dry-laid process. Additives include, but are not limited to, starch, fillers, light and heat stabilizers, antistatic agents, extrusion aids, dyes, anti-counterfeiting marks, slip agents, toughening agents, adhesion promoters, oxidation stabilizers, UV absorbers, coloring Agents, pigments, opacifiers (matting agents), optical brighteners, fillers, nucleating agents, plasticizers, viscosity modifiers, interface modifiers, antimicrobial agents, defoamers, lubricants, heat stabilizers Agents (thermostabilizer), emulsifiers, disinfectants, cold flow inhibitors, branching agents, oils, waxes and catalysts. The non-woven article may include at least 0.05, 0.1 or 0.5% by weight and / or no more than 10, 5 or 2% by weight of one or more additives.

Generally speaking, the manufacturing processes used to make non-woven articles from multi-component fibers can be divided into the following groups: dry-laid, wet-laid, a combination of these processes, or other non-woven processes.

Generally speaking, dry-laid non-woven articles are made using a segmented fiber processing mechanism designed to manipulate fibers in a dry state. These include mechanical processes such as carding, aerodynamics, and other airlaid approaches. This category also includes non-woven items made of filaments in the form of tows, fabrics made of cut fibers, and stitched filaments or yarns (should this be a carding machine?) (I.e. stitching Non-woven). The carding method is a process of untwisting, cleaning, and intermixing fibers to prepare a web for further processing into a non-woven article. The process is mainly to form a web by mechanically entanglement and fiber-fiber friction alignment of the fibers held together. Carding machines, such as roller carding machines, are generally configured with one or more master cylinders, rollers or stationary tops, one or more sanders, or various combinations of these major components. The carding action is to card or process a series of non-water-dispersible microfibers between the points of a carding machine on an interworking carding roller. The types of carding machines include roller cards, carding machines, carding machines, and random carding machines. A rewinder can also be used to align these fibers.

The multi-component fibers in the dry-laid process can also be arranged by air-laid. These fibers are guided by a stream of air onto a collector, which can be a plate conveyor or a roller.

The wet lamination process involves the use of paper manufacturing techniques to make non-woven items. These non-woven items are made using mechanisms related to pulp fibrosis (e.g., hammer mills) and paper formation (e.g., slurry pumping on continuous screens designed to manipulate short fibers that are fluid).

In one embodiment of the wet-laid process, the multi-component fibers are suspended in water and led to a forming unit, where the water is discharged through a forming screen, and the fibers are deposited on the wire.

In another embodiment of the wet-laid process, the multi-component fibers are dewatered on a screen or wire mesh, which begins to pass through a dewatering module (such as a suction box, foil, and arc) after the hydraulic forming agent starts (curatures)) at high speeds of up to 1,500 m / min. The flakes are dehydrated to a solids content of about 20 to 30 percent. The sheet can then be pressed and dewatered.

Non-woven items can be held together by: 1) cohesion and interlocking of mechanical fibers in a net or mat; 2) various techniques for melting fibers, including the use of binder fibers and / or the use of certain polymers and polymers Thermoplastic properties of blends; 3) Use of binding resins such as starch, casein, cellulose derivatives, or synthetic resins such as acrylic copolymer latex, styrenic copolymer, vinyl copolymer, polyurethane Or sulfonic polyester; 4) use a powder adhesive; or 5) a combination thereof. The fibers are often deposited in a random manner, but orientation in one direction is possible, followed by gluing using one of the methods described above. In one embodiment, the multi-component fibers may be substantially uniformly distributed throughout the nonwoven article.

The nonwoven article may also include one or more layers of water-dispersible fibers, multi-component fibers, or micro-denier fibers.

Non-woven items can also include various powders and granules to increase the absorbency of the non-woven items and their ability to act as delivery vehicles for other additives. Examples of powders and granules include, but are not limited to, talc, starch, various water absorbents, water-dispersible or water-swellable polymers (e.g., superabsorbent polymers, sulfonic polyesters and poly (vinyl alcohol)), dioxide Silicon, activated carbon, pigments and microcapsules. As mentioned previously, additives may also be present, but are not required depending on the particular application.
Examples
Examples 1

Sulfonic polyester polymers were prepared using the following diacid and glycol compositions: diacid composition (71.5 mole percent terephthalic acid, 20.0 mole percent isophthalic acid, and 8.5 mole percent 5- (sodium Sulfonic acid group) isophthalic acid) and a diol composition (65 mole percent ethylene glycol and 35 mole percent diethylene glycol). The sulfonic polyester was prepared by high temperature polyesterification under vacuum. The esterification conditions were controlled to produce a sulfonate-based polyester having an inherent viscosity of about 0.33. The melt viscosity of this sulfonate-based polyester was measured at 240 ° C and a shear rate of 1 radian per second in the range of about 6,000 to 8,000 poises.
Example 2

The sulfonic-based polyester polymer of Example 1 and the all-matte 0.64 IV PET obtained from Nanya Plastics Corporation were spun into a bi-component "striped" cross-section fiber with 11 total bands in the cross section, as shown in Figure 1 and Shown in 2. The multi-component fiber with five PET ribbons in FIG. 1 is a comparative example, in which it contains about 56.5% sulfonic polyester (five-PET ribbon multi-component fibers) on the periphery of the multi-component fibers. The multi-component fiber in FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the present invention, which contains six PET strips, and only 17.6% of the sulfonic polyester is located on the periphery of the multi-component fibers (six-PET strip multi-component fibers). In addition, the multi-component fiber in FIG. 2 has PET tape as an external tape instead of the sulfonic-based polyester as shown in FIG. 1.

These bicomponent fibers were spun using an extrusion temperature of 285 ° C for the polyester component and an extrusion temperature of 275 ° C for the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester component. The bicomponent fiber contains a large number of filaments (44 filaments) and is melt-spun at a speed of about 1240 meters / minute, thereby forming a filament having a nominal denier / filament of 5.3. A set of dual godet rollers were then used to stretch the filaments of the bicomponent fiber in a straight line, heated to 80 ° C and 125 ° C, respectively, and operated the final draw roller at a speed of about 3035 m / min to provide a fineness of about 2.45X The filament draw ratio thus formed a stretched ribbon bicomponent filament with a nominal denier / filament of about 2.15. The drawn bicomponent fiber is then wound into a spool and then woven into a fabric. The fabric was washed with soft water at 130 ° C to remove the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester component, thereby releasing the "flat" or ribbon-shaped polyester microfiber component of the bicomponent fiber. The resulting microfibers were rinsed with soft water at 25 ° C. These filaments comprise substantially "flat" polyester microfibers having a lateral thickness of about 1.5 microns and an average lateral width of 10-12 microns.
Example 3

The oil agent in the aqueous emulsion was applied to the multicomponent fiber produced in Example 2. Testing was performed in the range of 0.5 to 2 wt% anhydrous fibers in finished yarn (FOY). FOY measurements can be made by extraction or NMR and are usually performed under most spinning manufacturing operations. It was found that the five-strip PET fiber of Example 2 (which is a multicomponent fiber having more than 55% water-dispersible polymer, in this case a sulfonate-based polyester) exhibited significant fusion between the individual multicomponent fibers at the periphery. This melting makes winding and yarn handling difficult, as it is extremely difficult to entangle any air in the bundle to promote tangling of the bundle. Without being bound by theory, it is suspected that the sulfonate-based polyester interacts with the ingredients of the finishing emulsion. This reduces the effective Tg of the sulfonate-based polyester and promotes the adhesion or adhesion between adjacent multi-component fibers. The acid-based polyester is partially in contact. The yarn is extremely dense due to the adhesion between the individual multicomponent fibers, resulting in extremely dense bobbins. Dense spools cause high contact between the fibers, thereby promoting adhesion between the wraps on the spools. Measuring the unwinding tension of these spools shows a high tension, which increases with further entry into the spool. Therefore, there is a tension distribution that starts to decrease as the spool unwinds and increases until it reaches the end of the spool or the yarn breaks. It is often found that the yarn breaks before reaching the tube.

When similar tests were performed with the multi-component fiber (six PET strips) of FIG. 2 with less than 55% water-dispersible polymer on the periphery, it was found that the unwinding tension was significant for the six-strip PET fibers manufactured by the same process More uniform, with minimal unwrapping distribution.
Example 4

In any typical spinning process that produces fibers and yarns, oil is required for yarn lubrication and static control during processing. Finishing agents are usually applied to the yarn as an aqueous emulsion during the manufacturing process. For fibers containing water-dispersible ingredients, water applications can cause significant processing problems because the yarn can absorb a portion of the water and become sticky. In addition, it is possible that oil-based agents such as emulsifiers may interact with the water-dispersible polymer and further produce adhesion and poor performance.

As an example, a comparison is made between spools made with 5 PET sections (Figure 1) and 6 PET sections (Figure 2). The aqueous emulsion finishing agent containing 10% using Lurol ^® 748 (Goulston Technologies) Oil emulsion. The finish emulsion is applied at a rate such that the amount of oil on the anhydrous yarn will be about 1.5% by weight.

Each bobbin type is placed on a creel, and the yarn is unwound by air jet. The success of the yarn system was then removed from the spool. The results are shown in Table 1. The values in the table indicate that none of the spools (five-strip PET multi-component fiber) prepared as shown in Figure 1 will be completely unwound without breaking, while all spools (six-strip PET multi-component fiber) prepared as shown in Figure 2 are all unwound. Was completely removed. This shows that a higher percentage of water-dispersible polymer on the periphery of the bobbin prepared as shown in FIG. 1 results in a more tacky yarn and is not suitable for subsequent processing into fabrics.
table 1

It is known that spools made of 5 multi-component fibers with PET cross section must be stored in a temperature range and relative humidity (RH%), otherwise it promotes adhesion within the spool and causes serious unwinding problems. Because the sulfonate-based polyester is hydrophilic, it may tend to absorb moisture from the environment, which may reduce Tg (glass transition temperature) and promote adhesion between the wound fibers in the spool. The Tg of water-dispersible polymers can be greatly affected by the RH% of the environment. It has been found that the six-PET tape cross-section multi-component fiber of the present invention, which has less exposed sulfonate-based polyesters and therefore has fewer sulfonate-based polyester contacts between adjacent multi-component fibers, Not sensitive.
Example 5

The water-dispersible component of the multi-component fiber may have higher friction characteristics than the non-water-dispersible polymer component. It is found that the five Pet multi-component fibers shown in Figure 1 show higher friction characteristics than the six multi-component fibers shown in Example 2 and Figure 2, as measured by measuring the length required to draw the yarn through the pipe. Force shows. Minimizing the amount of sulfonic polyester on the surface of the multi-component fiber reduces this friction component and allows the multi-component fiber to behave more like a typical mono-component fiber.

The amount of friction and wear of the yarn on the surface is critical to the cost and reliability of subsequent processing of the yarn used to form the fabric structure. In order to evaluate the friction and wear performance of the yarn, an abrasion test was performed. The instrument used is a CTT-E Model LH-450 instrument manufactured by Lawson Hemphill Inc. (Swansea, Massachusetts), which is a common instrument used by the industry for measuring yarn properties. In this test, the yarn was drawn against a standardized copper wire and the number of cycles required to cut through the wire was recorded.

Using this equipment, a comparison was made between bobbins made with "5 strips" section (Figure 1) and "6 strips" sections (Figure 2) manufactured in Example 2.

Table 2 shows the number of recorded cycles required to cut through the wires for each product type. It should be noted that the 5-ribbon multicomponent fiber with a higher percentage of water-dispersible polymer on the periphery requires significantly fewer loops to cut the wire, indicating higher friction and abrasion of the yarn.
table 2
Examples 6

Two typical methods for producing multi-component melt-spun fibers are the FDY (fully drawn yarn) and POY / DTY (partially oriented yarn followed by drawing & texturing) spinning processes. These are commonly practiced spinning processes known in the art.

Generally speaking, the FDY process consists of adjusting the polymer material (usually by drying), using a certain type of screw extruder to melt the polymer, metering and combining melts of different components in the spinning combination, the spinning The combination has a design that selectively measures the polymer according to each spinning hole to produce the target cross-sectional geometry. The multi-component melt is extruded through a series of spinning holes, and the fiber is quenched and spun. To prepare the heat-stretched fiber, heat-stretch it between a pair of rollers, heat-treat the fully-stretched yarn, interleave the yarn (if necessary), and finally wind the yarn in a spool. Note that in the FDY process, the spool is wound into the final yarn product and is ready to be converted downstream into an article.

In general, POY is similar to the FDY process until the melt is extruded by the self-spinning combination. In POY, essentially all process stretching takes place between the spin box and the first set of stretching rolls. This forms a certain orientation in the yarn, but it is not fully stretched and there is no heat setting-so the yarn has minimal crystallinity. POY yarns have a higher elongation / break percentage and lower tensile strength than FDY yarns. This POY yarn will be stretched in a separate process and may be textured and heat set. It should be noted that there is no drying step in a typical POY spinning process, so yarns with a much higher moisture content than FDY yarns will be wound.

It was found that the comparison of 5-stranded PET cross-component multi-component fibers with about 56.5% sulfonic polyester on the fiber surface perimeter was extremely sensitive to spinning processing conditions. Although not wishing to be bound by theory, because the fibers are exposed to the finish emulsion and then heated to prepare for the stretching step, the evaporation of water applied in the finish emulsion and the diffusion of water into the water-dispersible polymer component There may be competition. It was found that 5 PET ribbon multi-component fibers are extremely sensitive to roll temperature and it is possible to disperse enough water in the sulfonic acid-based polyester before water evaporation to cause fiber attachment and winding problems.

In the POY spinning process, 5 PET ribbon cross-section multicomponent fibers were found to have two additional problems. First, the sulfonic polyester component contributes very little to the total fiber strength (the strength is mainly carried by the non-water dispersible polymer component) but it contributes to the multicomponent fiber quality. Under the typical winding speed (in the range of 3000-3600 mpm) of the POY spinning process, it was found that the combination of low strength and high quality of multi-component POY fibers caused fiber texture when winding the fibers, resulting in destabilizing winding and Cause fracture. Secondly, the high-moisture wound POY fibers interact with the sulfonate-based polyester on the fiber surface and produce a large amount of adhesion that prevents uniform unwinding.

It was found that a 6-PET ribbon multi-component fiber with a cross-section of about 17.6% of sulfonic polyester on the surface periphery of the fiber was much less sensitive to processing conditions and the problems of adhesion and winding were greatly reduced. 6 PET multi-component fiber with a cross section performs well in the POY spinning process, because the reduced amount of sulfonic polyester has less contribution to the fiber quality. In addition, the 6 PET ribbon cross-section multi-component fiber did not show significant adhesion due to the higher moisture content in the POY spool. It was found that some drying of POY yarns containing water-dispersible polymer components prior to winding may be beneficial in extending the shelf life of multi-component POY spools.
Example 7

Another example of a cross section that can be used in the present invention is a segmented round cake cross section. In this section, water-dispersible and non-water-dispersible polymers are alternately arranged in a wedge shape symmetrically around the fiber center. In addition, the polymer may need to be dispensed such that there is some additional amount of water-dispersible polymer provided at the center of the multicomponent fiber to facilitate wedge-shaped separation during removal of the water-dispersible component.

Examples of the sulfonic acid groups of the polyester polymer and a no light Nanya ^® 0.64 IV Formula pie bicomponent fiber cross section by spinning PET component segments, wherein segments 32 are present in the total of the cross-section shown in FIG. 4. 16 segments are composed of sulfonic polyester and 16 segments are composed of Nanya ^® PET. The ratio of Nanya ^® PET to sulfonate polyester constituting the fiber is 85:15, and the segments are distributed in a symmetrical arrangement, so no more than 15% of the outer periphery of the fiber is composed of sulfonate polyester. Some amount of sulfonic polyester is distributed in the center of the fiber (about 10% of the total sulfonic polyester feed). A cross section of this example is shown in FIG. 4. These bicomponent fibers were spun using an extrusion temperature of 285 ° C for the Nanya ^® polyester component and an extrusion temperature of 275 ° C for the water-dispersible sulfonic polyester component. Continuous spinning bicomponent yarns contain a large number of filaments (40 filaments-each filament has 32 segments) and are melt-spun at a speed of about 1015 m / min to form a nominal denier / filament with 7.4 Filaments. Then use a set of double godet rollers to stretch the filaments of the bicomponent fiber in a straight line, heat to 85 ° C and 125 ° C, respectively, and operate the final draw roller at a speed of about 3030 m / min to provide a fineness of about 2.9X The filament draw ratio thus formed a stretched segmented round cake bicomponent filament with a nominal denier / filament of about 2.5. The drawn bicomponent fiber is then heat set and wound into a spool. After the sulfonic polyester is removed in subsequent processing, the individual sections of the resulting PET will be approximately 0.13 dpf.
Comparative Example 8

After 5 to 6 hours, a large number of attempts have been made to texture samples of highly oriented (HOY) six strips of bicomponent "striped" fibers or filaments (Figure 2), but it is difficult to stretch the texturing machine through a friction disk Bi-component fiber take-up (or operation only). The friction disc stretching machine has the following elements: a first heating zone with a 3 meter long heating element and a temperature of 180 ° C, a twisting unit and a cooling zone; a second heating zone with a heating element and a super-feed shaft. Evaluate various combinations of input feed yarn, draw ratio, speed, and D / Y ratio. In each case, the yarn will break before the twisting unit and never reach the second heater or overfeed shaft. The temperature of the first heating element is set to 180 ° C, which is the temperature commonly used for standard polyester yarns. It should be noted that the filaments are extremely brittle and sometimes fuse together when coming out of the first heating element, and it is not possible to texture the fibers or to make a yarn.
Example 9

An additional attempt was made to texture samples of highly oriented (HOY) bicomponent "striped" cross-section fibers using the process described in Comparative Example 1 except that the first heating element was in the first zone at a low temperature of about 85 ° C. run. In this example, a 3 meter heater cannot maintain low temperatures, so a different 1 meter heater is used for yarns moving at 500 m / min. The starting fibers were passed through the system to make a good yarn by setting the heater in the first zone to about 85 ° C.
Example 10

After determining that a well-textured yarn can be manufactured using the lower heater temperature in the first zone, the other starting yarns are textured. A variety of yarn spools are manufactured by operating the starting yarn package under different conditions. Many samples of the six manufactured bi-component "striped" cross-section fibers (Figure 2) were then evaluated to determine the amount or range of texturing. Manufacture samples by changing parameters such as: input feed (denier, cross section, sulfonic polyester content%, FOY%, and elongation), stabilizer (or overfeed axis stretching), D / Y ratio, circle Disk configuration, disk material, winding% (overfeed axis to spool speed), draw ratio, main heater temperature and godet roller temperature.

The first heating element varies between 85 and 120 ° C. The second heating element varies between 75 and 110 ° C. The draw ratio varies from just above 1.0 to just above 2.0, the D / Y ratio varies from about 1.7 to 4.0, and the denier of the feed yarn varies from about 140 to just above 260. The feed yarn used is FDY or POY yarn. Details of the heater temperature used to prepare the yarn, the type of starting yarn, the draw ratio, and the D / Y ratio conditions are shown in Table 3.
table 3

All conditions shown in Table 3 make yarns suitable for further processing into fabrics or other materials.
Example 11

After performing the test as described in Example 10, the other six band bicomponent fibers (Fig. 2) were textured in the friction disc process of the present invention under selected conditions to produce about 120 yarn spools for supply Further use (such as for knitting, weaving, covering and the like). The friction disc machine is an SSM type RG12DTB, which uses a 1-6-1 ceramic friction disc and a one-meter main heater in the main heating zone. The main heater temperature was set to 100 ° C and the processing speed was about 800 m / min. The second heating zone uses a godet roller set at a temperature of 110 ° C. The D / Y ratio (circumferential speed of the disc / processing capacity of the yarn) is about 4.0, and the draw ratio is about 1.4. Using these conditions, an acceptable textured yarn is made for further processing into a fabric or other material.

As shown and described above, using the texturing process of the present invention provides yarns that are thicker or more bulky than those from a non-textured spinning process. In addition, using the texturing process of the present invention and multicomponent fibers as described provides thicker or more bulky yarns than standard polyester yarns. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, yarns textured using the friction disc process of the present invention are thicker or fluffier than those that are not textured using the process of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the textured fibers from the process of the present invention in a double knit configuration have a thickness of about 41% thicker than the same type of yarn or fiber that is fully stretched but not textured. Although single-sided knitting allows the two yarn bundles to be thickened, as shown in FIG. 7, textured fibers from the process of the present invention in a single-sided knit configuration have a thicker thickness than control yarns or fully stretched but untextured fibers About 8% thick.

8A and 8B visually depict the yarn shown in FIG. 6 in a double-knit interlocking structure. Images were acquired at 500x magnification. As shown in FIG. 8B, the yarn textured using the process of the present invention is thicker or more fluffy than a fully drawn yarn (FDY). 9A and 9B visually depict the yarn shown in the single jersey jersey structure shown in FIG. 7. Images were acquired at 500x magnification. As shown in Figure 9B, the yarns of the present invention are thicker or fluffy. Figures 10A, 10B, 11A and 11B show the same yarn at 100x magnification.

1‧‧‧ spool

2a‧‧‧input shaft or roller / feed roller

2b‧‧‧input shaft or roller / feed roller

3‧‧‧Heating element

4‧‧‧cooling device

5‧‧‧Twisting unit

6a‧‧‧center shaft or roller

6b‧‧‧center shaft or roller

7‧‧‧ post heating zone / second heating zone

8a‧‧‧ Overfeed shaft or roller

8b‧‧‧ Overfeed shaft or roller

9‧‧‧ Upper processing agent device

10‧‧‧ spool

Embodiments of the invention are described herein with reference to the following drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a cross section of a multi-component fiber, which has a stripe or stripe configuration containing 5 non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer strips and 6 water-dispersible polymer strips, of which the water-dispersible polymer strips Located on the outer perimeter. Non-water-dispersible polymer-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and water-dispersible polymer-based sulfonic polyester (5 strips of PET multi-component fiber). This comparative multicomponent fiber has 56.5% sulfonic polyester on the surface section of the multicomponent fiber.

FIG. 2 is an embodiment of the multi-component fiber of the present invention. The multi-component fiber has a stripe or stripe configuration including 6 non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer strips and 5 water-dispersible polymer strips. Non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer strips are located on the outer periphery. This multicomponent fiber has 17.6% water-dispersible polymer at the periphery of the surface cross-section of the multicomponent fiber. In one embodiment, the non-water-dispersible polymer is polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and the water-dispersible polymer is a sulfonic acid-based polyester (6 strips of PET multi-component fiber). This multicomponent fiber has 17.6% sulfonic polyester on the surface section of the multicomponent fiber.

FIG. 3 is an embodiment of the multi-component fiber of the present invention. The multi-component fiber has a segmented round cake configuration with 16 segments, and the segments of the water-dispersible polymer and the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer alternate. The water-dispersible polymer segment is smaller than the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer, so that the water-dispersible polymer at the periphery of the surface cross-section of the multicomponent fiber is about 21.6% water-dispersible.

FIG. 4 is an embodiment of the multi-component fiber of the present invention. The multi-component fiber has a segmented circular cake configuration with 32 segments, and the segments of the water-dispersible polymer and the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer alternate. The water-dispersible polymer segment is smaller than the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer, so that the water-dispersible polymer at the periphery of the surface cross-section of the multicomponent fiber is about 21.6% water-dispersible.

Figure 5. A diagram showing various types of textured fibers or yarns. In FIG. 5 (a), the textured fiber or yarn is curled. In FIG. 5 (b), the textured fiber or yarn is highly fluffy (the principle of stretching and relaxation). In FIG. 5 (c), textured fibers or yarns have a rising effect by using air jets. In FIG. 5 (d), the textured fiber or yarn is textured with a stretched core, which can retain good elasticity. In FIG. 5 (e), the textured fibers or yarns have a sineform texture (twisting and untwisting method). In FIG. 5 (f), the textured fiber or yarn has a crimp effect with a peak shape. In FIG. 5 (g), the textured fiber or yarn has a circular crimp effect. In Figure 5 (h), the heating gear provides crimp to the fiber or yarn. In FIG. 5 (i), textured fibers or yarns have been manufactured by a stuffing box method. In FIG. 5 (j), a textured fiber or yarn having high twist but not high elasticity is manufactured. In Fig. 5 (k), the textured fiber or yarn is crimped.

Fig. 6 is a graph comparing the thickness of an example of a double-faced knitted yarn of the present invention compared to a fully stretched yarn of the same type.

Fig. 7 is a graph comparing the thickness of an example of a single-sided knitted yarn of the present invention compared to a fully drawn yarn of the same type.

FIG. 8A is an image obtained at 500x magnification of an example of a double-knit fully stretched yarn.

FIG. 8B is an image obtained at 500 × magnification of an example of the double-sided knitted textured yarn of the present invention.

FIG. 9A is an image obtained at 500x magnification of an example of a single knit full stretch yarn.

FIG. 9B is an image obtained at 500x magnification of an example of a single-sided knitted textured yarn of the present invention.

FIG. 10A is an image obtained at 100x magnification for an example of a double-knit fully stretched yarn.

FIG. 10B is an image obtained at 100x magnification of an example of a double-knit textured yarn of the present invention.

FIG. 11A is an image obtained at 100x magnification of an example of a single knit full stretch yarn.

FIG. 11B is an image obtained at 100x magnification of an example of a single-sided knitted textured yarn of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a method of stretching and texturing the friction disk.

Claims (20)

A multi-component fiber having a shaped cross section, the multi-component fiber comprising, (A) at least one water-dispersible polymer; and (B) a plurality of domains comprising one or more non-water-dispersible polymers, wherein the domains are substantially separated from each other by the water-dispersible polymer interposed between the domains; and Wherein, the water-dispersible polymer exists in the periphery of the cross section of the multi-component fiber at a ratio of not more than 25% of the water-dispersible polymer. The multi-component fiber according to claim 1, wherein the water-dispersible polymer is selected from the group consisting of sulfonic polyester, polyvinyl alcohol, acrylic, polyethylene glycol, polyvinyl methyl ether, poly Polymers of ethyleneimine, polyquaternary amine, ethylene oxide, starch and modified cellulosic. The multi-component fiber according to claim 2, wherein the water-dispersible polymer is a sulfonic polyester. The multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present at the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multi-component fiber of the present invention in a proportion of not more than about 22% of the water-dispersible polymer. The multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present at the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multi-component fiber of the present invention in a proportion of not more than about 20% of the water-dispersible polymer. The multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the water-dispersible polymer is present at the periphery of the outer cross-section of the multi-component fiber of the present invention in a proportion of not more than about 18% of the water-dispersible polymer. The multicomponent fiber of claim 1, wherein the multicomponent fiber is textured. If the multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the multi-component fiber has a stripe-like or strip-like cross section with 11 strips; wherein the outer strips include a non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer; 6 strips include Non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer; and 5 of these bands contain water-dispersible polymer. The multi-component fiber of claim 8, wherein the water-dispersible polymer comprises a sulfonic polyester and the non-water-dispersible polymer comprises polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the multi-component fiber is cut to a length of about 0.1 mm to about 100 mm. The multi-component fiber of claim 3, wherein the weight ratio of the sulfonic acid-based polyester to the non-water-dispersible synthetic polymer component in the multi-component fiber is in a range of about 98: 2 to about 2:98. The multi-component fiber according to claim 3, wherein the sulfonic polyester is 50% by weight or less of the total weight of the multi-component fiber. The multi-component fiber of claim 3, wherein the sulfonic polyester contains at least 60 mole percent of dicarboxylic acid residues; wherein the dicarboxylic acid is selected from the group consisting of: aliphatic dicarboxylic acid, alicyclic Group dicarboxylic acids, aromatic dicarboxylic acids, or mixtures of two or more of these acids. The multi-component fiber of claim 3, wherein the sulfonic polyester contains residues of at least one sulfonic monomer of about 4 to about 40 mole percent based on total repeating units, and the sulfonic monomer has 2 Functional groups and one or more sulfonate groups attached to an aromatic or cycloaliphatic ring, where the functional groups are a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a combination thereof. The multicomponent fiber of claim 14, wherein the sulfonic acid monomer residues are selected from the group consisting of: wherein the sulfonate group is connected to the aromatic acid core, the sulfonic phthalic acid, Terephthalic acid, metal sulfonic acid salts of sulfonic acid isophthalic acid, or combinations thereof, and monomer residues of 5-sodium sulfonic acid isophthalic acid and its esters. The multi-component fiber of claim 3, wherein the sulfonic polyester contains one or more diol residues. The multicomponent fiber of claim 16, wherein the diol residues are selected from the group consisting of ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 2 1,4-dimethyl-2-ethylhexane-1,3-diol, 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediol, 2-ethyl-2-butyl-1,3-propanediol , 2-ethyl-2-isobutyl-1,3-propanediol, 1,3-butanediol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,6-hexanediol, thiodiethanol, 1,2-cyclohexanedimethanol, 1,3-cyclohexanedimethanol, 1,4-cyclohexane Dimethyl alcohol, 2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanediol, p-diol, and a combination of one or more of these diols. If the multi-component fiber of claim 3, wherein the sulfonate-based polyester has a glass transition temperature of at least 25 ° C, for standard polymers such as differential scanning calorimetry ("DSC" "). The multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the non-water-dispersible polymer is selected from the group consisting of polyolefin, polyester, copolyester, polyamide, polylactic acid, polycaprolactone, polycarbonate, Polyurethane, acrylic, cellulose ester and polyvinyl chloride. For example, the multi-component fiber of claim 1, wherein the configuration of the multi-component fiber is selected from the group consisting of eccentric sheath-core type, side by side, segmented round cake type, stripe (stripe), scattered island shape, and combination.